Fig, brown butter + almond
frangipane tartlets
Do you ever get that every-cell-of-your-body excitement when
something delicious is afoot? It happens to me when opening a
packet of salt and vinegar crisps or inhaling the initial spicy waft
of cinnamon doughnuts. In this recipe, it is the moment when
the brown butter base meets the frangipane aromatics. I literally
quiver with an-tici-pation of the tartlet to come.

Don’t go rogue and think browning all the butter will take
the flavour further – it actually just leaves a greasy film on the
palate. And while ninety-nine per cent of the planet abhors
marzipan flavour, a strict drop of almond essence will bump
the nuttiness up a nut-ch – giving it a je ‘nut’ sais quoi.

Chilling the freshly made frangipane base gifts you a magical
echo of fluffiness juxtaposed with a relishable cakey chew. If I
bake without the chill, it pouffs airily over the sides. If I increase
the almond meal or don’t build an airy base, the filling will feel
heavy and dry. This is baking balance. This is zen and the art
of frangipane fluff maintenance.

Take the chilled Super flaky buckwheat crust out of the fridge and
allow to become cool and pliable for rolling (around 30 minutes).

While the dough softens, start the frangipane. Cook 70 g (2½ oz)
of the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat, until it turns
a foamy tan brown. Scratch the browned bits off the base with a
wooden spoon as it cooks, and keep a close watch – we want burnt
butter, but not TOO burnt butter. Scrape it into the bowl of an electric
stand mixer and chill for 30 minutes.

continued …

Keeps Raw, filled and fruited: up to

2 days chilled. Baked: best on the
day of baking, as the fruit can shrink
from the frangipane. If that’s not a
dealbreaker, keep it airtight at ambient
temperature for 2 days. It’s a great
bake to set up for a dinner party
where you can bake them just before
serving. Warm frangipane is the best!

Makes 6 tartlets, or a tart for you to

eat nearly every day of the week.

Takes With the pastry made,

1½ hours. Or roll and fill with
frangipane and fruit the day prior,
then bake the next day.

½ × batch Super flaky
buckwheat crust (page 76)
Brown butter frangipane
140 g (5 oz) unsalted butter,
cool and pliable
cooking oil spray
120 g (4½ oz) caster (superfine)
sugar
20 g/ml (¾ oz) dark rum
(or Amaretto)
5 g (⅛ oz/½ teaspoon) vanilla
paste
a strict drop of almond essence
(if you’re okay with it)
2 large eggs
190 g (6½ oz) blanched
almond meal
2 g (¹⁄₁₆ oz/¼ teaspoon) fine
sea salt
Topping
8–10 fresh figs
50 g (1¾ oz) flaked almonds
15 g (½ oz) unsalted butter
20 g (¾ oz) raw (or demerara)
sugar