Plum Frangipane Tart has to be one of the tastiest tarts out there ... and it looks mighty pretty too! Buttery, flaky shortcrust pastry tart shell is filled with sweet almond frangipane filling and then topped with the most beautifully coloured plum slices. Baked to golden perfection, this tart is divine served cold or warmed with a dollop of double cream
I adore making tarts at home to share with family and friends. My favourites alongside this Plum Frangipane Tart have to be Lemon Meringue Tarts and my Earl Grey Crème Brûlée Tart. They are always a winner.
But if you want a visual showstopper that is easier to make than you think, then this plum and almond tart is what you need in your life! Why not make this impressive Italian dessert instead of making traditional tiramisu? The natural beauty of those sliced plums, hands down turns this tart into a work of art. And to be honest, it isn’t a hard tart to make, but I’ll tell you something .... if you produced this at the end of a meal for your friends and family, or brought it round to a mate’s house ... you’d get a room full of ooooh's, and aaagh’s! Promise.
An awesome tart starts with a beautiful pastry. Today I’ve used my favourite Sweet Short Crust Pastry for this tart. It comes together easily, is deliciously flakey and compliments the almond frangipane filling and plums perfectly! Make sure to check out my Sweet Short Crust Pastry Guide for step-by-step photos, detailed instructions and tips to make this amazing pastry.
The Tart is then filled with an almond frangipane filling. ‘What's frangipane’? I hear you saying! Made from a combination of butter, sugar, eggs and ground almonds, the filling is essentially an almond pastry cream that the French and Italians traditionally use around Christmas. It’s super easy to make and pairs so beautifully with the plums sliced delicately on top (and any other fruit for that matter!)
Why you'll love this recipe
- Flakey Pastry. The sweet short crust pastry is perfectly buttery and 'short', aka flakey.
- Simple to make the filling. The frangipane filling comes together in a matter of minutes.
- Hero's seasonal produce. This recipe highlights beautiful seasonal plums. But you can sub them with apricots, peaches or figs if you like.
- Showstopper. By arranging the plum slices, this way elevates an everyday tart into a work of art.
- Make ahead. The tart case can be made and blind baked the day before serving. On the day, all you need to do is make the simple frangipane filling, slice and arrange the plums and bake.
Ingredients needed
Sweet short crust pastry
- Dry ingredients - plain flour, powdered icing sugar, lemon zest. Sift the flour and icing sugar to remove any lumps
- Wet ingredients - butter, egg, water. These three ingredients should be cold to ensure the pastry is flakey.
Frangipane filling
- Butter - I use unsalted butter, and it needs to be at room temperature so that it can be creamed with the sugar.
- Sugar - granulated or caster sugar both work equally well in providing sweetness to the frangipane.
- Eggs - 2 large eggs to provide structure and richness to the filling.
- Almond meal (ground almonds) - Hero ingredient for the filling. I use store-bought but see my FAQ's on how to make your own almond meal.
- Flour - Some recipes don't call for all-purpose flour, but I prefer to add just a little as it helps make a slightly firmer filling.
- Lemon zest, vanilla extract, almond extract, salt - these ingredients in their own individual ways provide extra layers of flavour to the frangipane.
Step-by-step instructions
*Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients list & instructions!*
When making my plum frangipane tart, it has three separate components to bring it together. Firstly, the tart base needs to be blind baked and then cooled. Secondly, the frangipane filling is made and poured into the tart base. Lastly, the decoration, which involves plums that are sliced and layered on top of the frangipane before baking and when pulled out of the oven, the plums are brushed with honey and decorated with thyme leaves.
Sweet short crust pastry
My Sweet Short Crust Pastry Guide has all the step-by-step photos to make this pastry perfectly. I recommend taking a quick look and read.
1-3. Make the dough. Sift the flour, powdered icing sugar and salt into a large bowl, rub the butter and flour between your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir the beaten egg and water into the flour mixture until it starts to resemble a dough. Use your hands to bring the dough together and shape it into a disc. Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
4-5. Prepare the tart tin with the dough. Using a rolling, roll the dough out on a lightly floured work surface until it's the thickness of a coin and 30cm (12in) in diameter. (Image 1) Gently lift the dough into your tart tin (Image 2). Use your fingers to push the pastry onto the sides of the tin. (Image 3) Trim off any excess, then refrigerate overnight.
6. Blind Bake. Dock the bottom of the tart with a fork (Image 4), place parchment paper in the bottom, then fill with pie weights. (Image 5) Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and pie weights. Make egg wash by whisking small egg and milk together. Brush the base of the tart with the egg wash (Image 6) and bake for another 7-10 minutes until the pastry is golden.
TIPS for making pastry: Use cold ingredients, don't overwork the dough and make sure to rest the dough in the refrigerator (both times!)
Make the frangipane filling
1. Cream butter, sugar and lemon together. In the bowl of a stand mixer add the butter, sugar and lemon zest. (Image 7) Beat until pale and creamy. (Image 8)
2. Add remaining ingredients. Add one egg at a time (Image 9) and beat until combined (Image 10) Sift in almond meal, flour, salt, vanilla and almond extract- mix.
Fill the tart base. Add the almond cream to the tart shell (Image 13) and smooth out evenly with an offset spatular. (Image 14)
Decorate with plums. Using a sharp knife, slice the plums in half and de-stone them. Slice each half thinly, setting aside each end. (Image 15). Starting from the outside edge, place your plum slices next to one another, spiralling in on top of the filling. (Image 16) Bake the tart until the filling is golden. (Image 17)
3. To decorate: Once baked, brush plums with honey (Image 18) and sprinkle thyme leaves.
TIPS: If you want a quicker, more rustic way to top your plum frangipane tart, then quarter the plums and randomly scatter or place them neatly onto the filling.
Variations
I adore making tarts with this almond cream filling as it lends itself so beautifully to fruit!! It’s amazing in that respect! Here are some options for you to create your own delicious frangipane tart:
- Apricot Frangipane Tart: I created this recipe for Sister Mag (p.176) nearly two years ago, and I still love it. Add halved apricots and a handful of blackberries on top of your filling, and when baked, scatter toasted pistachios for a Mediterranean feel.
- Pear Almond Tart: Halve 3 pears and core them (maintaining the stalk). Slice the pears halves almost up to the stalk and fan out the halves. Place the 6 halves on top of the frangipane and scatter liberally with almond flakes. A stunning way of hero-ing in-season pears that work so beautifully with almonds
- Apple Hazelnut Tart: An Autumn take on this simple tart is to substitute the almond meal with hazelnut meal (ground hazelnuts). Peel, core and slice 3 apples and toss in lemon juice to stop them from browning before laying them onto the filling.
Pro tips
TIPS: For making the shortcrust pastry
- Cold ingredients: Ensure that your ingredients (including your dry ingredients in a hot climate) are cold before using. If you have hot hands, run them under cold water and dry them before handling the dough.
- Don’t overwork the dough: Bring the dough together with your hands and press together. Only knew a couple of times if necessary. Overworking the dough will lead to tough pastry.
- Rest time: Don’t skimp on the suggested rest times. This allows the flour to hydrate from the wet ingredients, and more importantly, the butter to harden. The pastry hits the hot oven; the cold butter will melt, causing steam pockets in your pastry = flakey pastry!
TIPS: For filling and decorating the tart
- Cream butter/sugar well: Creaming the sugar and butter well incorporates air and makes for a lighter frangipane.
- Use a sharp knife: This ensures neat, clean slices when cutting the plums.
- Decorate as you wish: I added the slices and layered them quite tightly together on top of the filling. This obviously takes more time to slice and lay the plums. If you wish to add fewer plums onto the top, then lay them with more space or even quarter the plums and scatter them randomly on top of the filling.
Frequently asked questions
Frangipane is called an almond filling/cream filling/almond cream used to fill a pastry. On the other hand, Marzipan is an almond-sugar paste that's used to make and then painted to make imitation fruit. It’s really dense, making it easy to shape.
Actually, you can use both! I use almond meal (ground almonds) purely because it's more easily accessible at the mainstream supermarket that I shop at. Almond flour has a much finer texture to it, and so the results of the frangipane will be slightly different - smoother. I personally prefer the tiny granules you can feel when using almond meal.
Yes, you have to use a tart pan to make this tart. BUT there is a more rustic way to make this, and that’s by making a plum frangipane galette. Roll the pastry out and then spoon the filling into the centre, smoothing it out but leaving a couple of inches around the edge. Layer your plum slices on top and lift the pastry folding the edges up around the edge. It can look as rustic as you like! Check out the image of a peach galette I shared on Instagram to understand what I am talking about!!
In truth, yes and no! A frangipane tart comprises the pastry shell, frangipane filling and fruit. A Bakewell tart (originally from Bakewell in Northern England) is made up of a pastry case, then a layer of jam is spooned into the bottom. The almond cream filling is then spooned onto the jam, and then it’s baked. Afterwards, a thick layer of icing covers the baked filling, and traditionally, a single cherry adorns the top!
How to store and freeze
To store: Wrap cooled Plum Tart in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 days.
To freeze: You can freeze your Plum Frangipane Tart by baking it and letting it cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and then foil and place in a freezer bag. Freeze for 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then allow to come to room temperature before serving.
Tools you’ll need
- Rolling Pin: Needed to roll the dough perfectly flat.
- Deep fluted tart tin with a removable base 23cm (9-inch): I use a deep fluted tin as I love the little bit of extra height on the pastry. But you can use a shallow tart tin too. The frangipane will fill the tart base and the plums will sit up from the sides of the tart. Essentially they both taste EXACTLY the same... Divine!
- Stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment: I use a stand mixer to make the frangipane as it's easily accessible in my kitchen. BUT you can definitely use handheld electric beaters to make it too. And if you need an arm work out then beat the sugar and cream by hand too!!
More Spring/Summer recipes that you might like
If you tried this Plum Frangipane Tart or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how you go in the comments below. I love hearing from you. Also, please leave a star rating whilst you're there!
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This post was originally published in September 2019 but has been updated with new photos, new content and a revised recipe.
Plum Frangipane Tart Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Shortcrust dough
- 220 g plain flour (all-purpose), sifted, plus extra for dusting
- 40 g powdered icing sugar (confectioners’ sugar), sifted
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 1 lemon, zest
- 115 g unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 15-30 ml water, ice-cold
- 1 small-medium egg, for egg wash
- 1 tsp milk, for egg wash
Frangipane filling
- 115 g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 1 lemon, zest
- 2 large eggs
- 100 g almond meal (ground almonds)
- 65 g plain flour (all-purpose)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 6-8 fresh plums
- 1 tbsp honey
- fresh thyme leaves
Instructions
Sweet short crust pastry
- Rub the butter into the flour. Sift the dry ingredients, flour, icing sugar and salt into a large bowl. Add the lemon zest and the cold, cubed butter into the flour and rub the butter and flour together between your fingers until it resembles a bread crumb consistency with a few pea-sized pieces of butter still visible.
- Add egg and water. Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in your egg. Using a fork, mix the egg into the flour. Add 1 tablespoon (15ml) ice-cold water and use your hands to bring the dough together. Add more water sparingly if needed.
- Bring dough together and refrigerate. Tip the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface. Use floured hands to shape pastry into a ball taking care not to overwork the dough. Flatten slightly into a disc and wrap well in cling wrap. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
- Roll out dough. Remove the chilled pastry from the refrigerator and transfer it to a clean, lightly floured surface. Allow pastry to sit for about 10 minutes or so to soften ever so slightly. Trying to roll pastry that is too cold will cause the edges to crack. To roll out, lightly flour your countertop and rolling pin and using firm, even strokes, roll from the centre outward, turning the pastry a quarter turn every few strokes. Roll the pastry out to the thickness of a coin (⅛” thick) and into a 12in (30cm) circle.
- Prepare dough in tart tin. Flour the base of a 9in (23cm) deep fluted tart tin and gently lift the pastry and place into the prepared tin. Use your fingers to push the pastry onto the sides of the tin and into the grooves. Using a sharp knife, trim off the excess pastry from the tin. Refrigerate the prepared pastry shell for at least 1 hour to allow the pastry to relax further and butter to harden. (My preference is to leave the shell overnight in the fridge and continue with the recipe the next day. If you do this then cover well in cling wrap to ensure that the pastry doesn’t dry out.)
- Blind bake. Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Once the pastry is chilled, prick the pastry base all over with a fork and then line with greaseproof paper and fill with pie weights or rice (or both) all the way up the sides. Blind bake for 15 minutes, then remove the greaseproof paper and pie weights. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk to form your egg wash. Brush the base of the pastry with egg wash and return the pastry back to the oven and bake for a further 7-10 minutes or until the base is dry and a light golden colour. Remove from the oven and leave the tart base to cool.
Frangipane filling
- Make frangipane filling whilst the tart base is cooling. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together on medium speed for 5 minutes until pale.
- Add wet then dry ingredients. Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl every so often. Add the almond meal, flour, salt, vanilla and almond extract and mix until combined. Pour the frangipane filling into the tart shell and spread out evenly.
- Slice plums and place on tart. Cut each of the plums in half and de-stone. With a sharp pairing knife, thinly slice the halves. Set to one side the two rounded 'ends' , you can eat these later.Starting from the outside and working your way in, place your plum slices, next to one another, spiralling in on top of the filling. Place the tart back in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until the filling has set and is golden brown.
To decorate
- Remove the tart from the oven and brush the plums with honey warmed in the microwave for a couple of seconds. Sprinkle with thyme leaves (optional but recommended!).
All recipes are developed and tested in Metric grams. I strongly recommend that you bake using digital scales for a more accurate result. I have provided a conversion to US customary in the recipe but please note that I haven’t tested using this method.
Notes
- Cold ingredients: Ensure that your ingredients (including your dry ingredients if you are in a hot climate) are cold before using. If you have hot hands, run them under cold water and dry them before handling the dough.
- Don’t overwork the dough: Bring the dough together with your hands and press together. Only knew a couple of times if necessary. Overworking the dough will lead to tough pastry.
- Rest time: Don’t skimp on the suggested rest times. This allows the flour to hydrate from the wet ingredients, and more importantly the butter to harden. The pastry hits the hot oven, the cold butter will melt causing steam pockets in your pastry = flakey pastry!
- Cream butter/sugar well: Creaming the sugar and butter well incorporates air and makes for a lighter frangipane.
- Use a sharp knife: This ensures neat, clean slices when cutting the plums.
- Decorate as you wish: I added the slices and layered them quite tightly together on top of the filling. This obviously takes more time to slice and lay the plums. If you wish to add fewer plums onto the top then lay them with more space or even quarter the plums and scatter them randomly on top of the filling.
Marenka
A wonderful recipe to make. Love the combination of plums and almonds. Your step-by-step photos makes it so easy, Emma!
Emma
It’s an amazing tart to make and I’m so happy that you love it! Thank you for the kind words xxx
Elizabeth
Hi, I want to make this tart tomorrow for some guests- looks beautiful! Can you advise- what size is your tart tin? Just want to make sure I prepare enough dough tonight.
Thank you
Emma
Hi Elizabeth, This makes a 23cm/9inch tart. Emma
Amy
Hi! Do you think I can use almond flour instead of almond meal for the frangipane? Thanks!
Emma
Hi Amy- Its the same thing- over here in UK we call ground almonds almond meal. 🙂
Niki
Hello! I’m pretty sure I followed the recipe correctly but my dough would not bind. How much is a splash of milk? Unfortunately the dough was too dry for me. Thanks!
Emma
Hi Niki thank you for you comment, and so sorry to hear that it was dry. Pastry is very individual and needs to be done often with feel. Your dough needed a little more moisture for it to come together. If that happens then add an extra teaspoon of liquid, whether milk of iced water for it to help bring the dough together.
Joan
I made this Plum and Almond Tart over the weekend and it is truly spectacular!! I made the pastry the day before and blind baked it ready for the day of serving (the pastry btw is the bomb! So flakey and 'short'), then on the day of serving it was super quick to make the frangipane filling. The most time-consuming part was slicing the plums - but really it didn't take that long! The plums paired SO well with the almond filling. Perfection- Thanks heaps for an awesome recipe!
Emma
What a great comment to receive Joan! Thank you! So glad that you enjoyed it and now you have a great base recipe- you can top the tart off with all different types of in-season fruits. Enjoy x
Klaudia
I had sooo much fun preparing this tart! And in the end it turned out not only beautiful, but also SUPER TASTY! Fully recommend that recipe!
Emma
Hi Klaudia, That makes me SO happy to hear you enjoyed the process of making my Plum and Almond Tart. I loved seeing your image on Instagram - it looked sensational and you fanned those plums so beautifully! Doesn't the plum pair so beautifully with the frangipane! xx
iman Dawoud
HI Emma,
Thank you for this lovely recipe, I made it and it was a huge success! I'm not a pastry expert so always a little worried when I make pastry and was working with a tricky oven but it came out beautifully. I made the pastry shell and froze it a month in advance following your instructions and it was perfect!
Can't wait to try more of your recipes!
Iman
Emma
Hi Iwan,
Thank you SO much for this fabulous feedback. Making tart doesn't have to be intimidating once you know-how. And making the tart shell in advance is the best time-saving hack ever, isn't it! Thanks Emma
vivi
Hi Emma, i made this tart and it taste good.
But my tart shell was puff after i removed the pie weight. And second time i tried to bake longer then removed the pie weight, it still puff but not as much like 1st time.
Any suggestion to prevent it? Thanks.
Emma
Hi Viv, The fact that your pastry wants to puff is a good thing- it means that you have made it well, there are layers within the dough and in the oven, the hot air gets within the layers and springs it open. But this isn't the look we want, and that's why we blond bake the tart shell, so as to minimise the puff up and have a beautiful looking tart. So the only thing I can question is whether you had enough pie weights in there. I really fill my tart with the pie weights/rice so that there is even weight all over the bottom and around the sides of the tart preventing the pastry from puffing but allowing it to still cook.
Helen
Thanks for a great recipe! I paid attention to all the tips and steps but somehow I still had just a bit of a singe on the edges of some of the plums, which I made sure weren’t too thin. Is there any way to avoid this, other than some foil to cover half way through?
Emma
Hi Helen, Possibly your oven runs quite hot. To combat this you could use an internal thermometer, just to make sure your temperature is where you want it to be. The juices and natural sugars in the fruit would cause them to caramelise during baking. If you aren't a fan of darker edges, then yes, adding an aluminium foil ten halfway through should do the trick to minimise this.
x