Almond Tart

Among all nuts almonds stand, for me, as the most elegant and versatile. You can use them in a variety of ways, from savory dishes to decadent desserts without forgetting the milk, the perfect substitution for diary milk. In Portuguese cuisine, almonds are used mostly on desserts with the great majority of the recipes coming from the convents to us, along the centuries. One of the singular characteristics of the conventual desserts is the almost unbelievable quantity of eggs used. Portuguese conventual pastry was almost like a side effect of the excess of eggs produced within the boundaries of the convents. The result is a span of rich, creamy and gooey sweets that will embrace you in a wrap of sweet happiness. 

The almond tart - one of the ex libris of portuguese conventual pastry - is no exception. The other side of the coin shows that some people do not feel that much happy specially about the gooey part of the embrace. One of my friends is among those particular beings and wrote me asking for help to cook an almond tart without eggs. I have to confess that I had never thought about almond tart without eggs but, who knows how, I managed to successfully create a recipe that uses only 1 egg and it is to make the tart base. So, to those of you who are not fans of gooey fillings, here it is my recipe for almond tart.

If not using a pre-cooked tart base, start by putting in a bowl 1.5 cups (200 grams) of all-purpose flour, a pinch of salt, another of cinnamon, and 7 tablespoons (100 grams) of butter cut into small pieces. Mix the butter with the flour until obtaining a homogenous  mixture with an almost grainy texture (you can use an electric mixer or your hands). Then, add 1/2 cup (100 grams) of granulated sugar and 1 egg and kneed until all the ingredients are well mixed and manageable piece of dough is formed. On a plane surface, roll the dough and cover a 9 or 10 inches removable base tart pan with it. This dough is fragile but easy to fix. So if you happen to crack it at some point, just press both pieces together with your fingers and not even you will remember what happened. If using a pre-cooked tart base, skip the previous steps and go directly to the next part of the recipe.

Now the filling. In a pan, bring to the boil, over medium-high heat, 18 oz (4.5 dl) of water and 3 cups (600 grams) of granulated sugar. Let it boil for 30 to 40 minutes or until the mixture starts to thicken and turning into caramel color. At this point, low the heat to medium, add 2 cups (350 grams) of peeled and laminated almond and mix thoroughly so they get well coated with the caramel. If the almonds show the tendency to absorb all the caramel, add more water (half a cup, or less, at a time). In another pan, melt 2 sticks (around 200 grams) of unsalted butter. When the butter is melted, add 1/2 a cup of sugar, 6 tablespoons of almond milk (or regular milk, if you do not have it), 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, a pinch of salt and one or two drops of rum. Mix everything very well, strain the almonds (you can keep the caramel in a glass can to use later) and add them to the mixture. Pour the mixture into the tart base/pan and place in a pre-heated oven (350ºF) for 50 minutes or until the surface turns into a dark golden color (or light golden, depending on your taste). Let it cool enough to allow you to safely maneuver the tart pan and remove the tart from the pan. Do not allow it to cool down completely before taking it off the pan or the it will be "glued". Serve cold with a cup of coffee, your favorite tea or your favorite juice. 

Surprisingly, this did work! Although the caramelized surface offers some resistance to the knife, the inside is tender and rich without being gooey. Thank you Pat! Without you I would never thought of this recipe. Hope you like it! :)