How to make a French tart
If you have every wanted to learn how to make a French tart, you are in the right place. Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make an apricot French tart including how to make tart dough. You CAN make this! This recipe is easy, simple and authentic.
If you have extra apricots because, um, you have an apricot tree, this recipe is a great way to use apricots.
French Tart Dough Recipe – Step by Step Pictures
This tart dough is easy to make in a food processor. A special kneading method called fraisage is used to blend the flour and butter together with out making the dough tough. The dough is worked cold and rolled out just like a pie crust. You CAN do this! 
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Why I love French tarts.
Have you ever heard of the Imposter Phenomenon? It’s the concept describing high-achieving individuals who have trouble internalizing their accomplishments and believe they will be exposed as a fraud. It’s not a mental disorder or a personality trait but rather a response to a situation. It’s really interesting and continues to be studied.
Why do I bring this up? Because in the kitchen, especially with baking, super especially with French pastries, I feel like a fraud. Learning to cook is a life long process which includes at the basic level learning to chop, dice, sauté, wash dishes etc.
With pastries, there is so much more to it. Baking includes complex chemical reactions that need a narrow window of ingredients to make the reactions happen properly.
Too much flour or liquid in the dough and you pretty much have to start over. I have always thought of baking as needing an advanced set of skills, sometimes convincing myself that only cooking school graduates should attempt to master, especially with French pastries!
Well, you do need more advanced skills- but the secret that the imaginary angry French Chef from Le Cordon Bleu – that lives in my head- never told me is that each pastry recipe learned builds those skills one-by-one, easily.
French tart dough is a great start to building those skills and that is why I love French tarts! I even succeeded on the first try!
This recipe is adapted from my latest favorite French cookbook and guide, French Classics Made Easy
The fabulous serving pieces were made by my husband, Mr. Craftiness.
I forgot to prick the dough with a fork and the world did NOT end. If this happens to you, just remember Julia Child when she dropped the chicken or duck on the floor on her TV show. She told the audience, ‘Well dearie, if you don’t tell them they won’t know’, or something like that. You know which episode, right? Are there any JC fans out there? Gimme some love!
For 15 recipes to cook and eat on Bastille Day, click here!
Bon Appetit!
French Apricot Tart Recipe
Prep Time: 30- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 12 slices
Category: Dessert
Method: Baking
Cuisine: French
Prep Time:
Yield:
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Pin RecipeDescription
A French Tarte aux Abricot recipe with step-by-step instructions.
Ingredients
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour (190g)
1 Tbs sugar
8 Tbs cold, unsalted butter (115g)
1 large egg
1-2 Tbs cold water
3 Tbs corn starch
1/4 cup sugar
3 1/2 cups of fresh apricot haves, may use frozen (thawed)
1/2 cup apricot jam mixed with 3 Tbs water
OPTIONAL
1/2 cup of sugar to mix with the apricots to increase sweetness.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 475F.
- Place flour and sugar in food processor and pulse a few times.
While processing, add butter, one tablespoon at a time until well incorporated. - In a small bowl, add egg and water and mix well. While processing, add egg mixture in a slow stream and continue to process until dough comes together in a ball, take dough out.
- On a floured surface, dust the dough with flour and fraisage* the dough four or five times until the dough is smooth and doesn’t stick to the surface. Form dough into a round shape, refrigerate 15 minutes.
- Roll dough out on a floured surface into the size and shape that will fit your 9 to 11 inch tart pan. Roll dough up onto rolling pin and transfer to tart pan. Push the dough into the pan at the edges. Using a rolling pin, roll along the top to cut the excess dough off, see pictures above.
Poke holes in tart with a fork several times. - Sprinkle tart with corn starch and sugar, add apricots.
- Bake tart on lowest rack for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 425F and continue baking for approximately 30 minutes or until tart is gently boiling and rim of crust is dark brown.
- Take the tart out and *unmold immediately to put on a cooling rack.
When the tart has cooled, brush top with apricot and water mixture gently.
Notes
- Fraisage is a technique of kneading where you take the palm of your hand and push outward, repeating until the dough is flattened. The goal is to push the butter and flour together in a tighter bind.
- To unmold a tart pan, slide part of the pan over the edge of counter, wrap your hand and forearm with a kitchen towel to protect from burns, push up the bottom of the pan to unhinge the ring, letting the ring dangle on your wrist, carry tart to cooling rack, slide off the tart.
- Apricots have lower sugar than many other fruits. If your sweetness preference is on the higher side, you may want to add an additional 1/2 cup white sugar to the apricots to counter the tartness of the fruit. This is a tip from one of the readers, thanks Charity!
More French Recipes:
Pâte á Choux
French Mushroom Soup
Beurre Blanc, a French White Sauce
French Sardine Pate
I presume you mean 1/4 cup sugar
A round tart pan (as shown in your photos) cannot be described as 9 x 11. I presume you mean the diameter of the pan should be 11 inches.
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Hi James! Yes, 1/4 cup sugar, great catch! The tart dough can fit anywhere from a 9 to 11 inch tart pan. I changed it in the instructions, hopefully it’s more clear. I really appreciate your feedback! If you make this, let me know how it turns out. Take care.
Hi 🙂 If we do not have a food processor, how do you recommend doing the dough? Thank you for the answer!
Hi Tihana, great question! I suggest mixing dry ingredients, then add butter and ‘cut’ the flour with a pastry cutter or the back of a fork until the butter is well incorporated with the flour. The dough will look crumbly. Add the beaten egg and cold water and mix until dough is just smooth. Then fraisage the dough as in the pictures. Good luck and let me know if you have any questions and let us know how it turns out!
Wow! That looks fabulous and I appreciate your explanations and reassurances. I think I would feel confident to try this. (by the way, your husband’s “craftiness” is pretty awesome too)
Aw thanks Pam, I will surely tell him:)
Most times I just use a premixed pastry crust – but yours looks so easy and SOOO AMAZING! And wow – that filling – luscious!
It really is easy, I was surprised too!
What a pretty tart. I love the idea of using apricots for something special. This looks delicious and perfect served at a dinner party.
I love how this looks too! It’a great recipe for anybody with an apricot tree too;)
Mmmm. That was a fun read!! I love apricots not only because of the taste, but they remind me of my mother!! I can’t wait to follow your recipe and make your tart!! Delish!
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Thanks Elaine, I’m glad this brought back fond memories:)
This is so beautiful and elegant. Thank you for breaking down the steps and adding some information on technique. THIS is what makes good cooks great cooks!
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This looks stunning! Love how easy you made it look! 😀
This looks like an interesting tart recipe, however, looking at the picture of the apricots on the dough covered with the cornstarch and sugar, are those apricots sautéed? They look pre-cooked , not fresh?
Hi Carmela, these apricots came from my apricot tree. I cut them in half and freeze them. These were thawed before placing on the dough. If you can find frozen apricots I recommend using those. Fresh work well too. I am lucky to have fruit trees and grape vines. Utah is great for growing fruit.
We’re lovers of Apricots and this recipe looks delish! So beautiful!
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Thanks Jessica, I love apricots too! Can you grow an apricot tree where you live?
I think the apricots should be sliced rather than halved and they definitely need sugar. Next time I think I’ll toss sliced apricots with the sugar and cornstarch. Also, the crust isn’t as delectable as other tart crusts that didn’t use an egg (eg Julia Child’s / Ina Garten’s for free form apple tart). Easy and tasty!
Hi Charity, thanks for the feedback. Sweetness level is definitely a personal preference, even in my own house. My hubby and daughter are on the sweet end of the spectrum and I’m somewhere on the low end. Apricots do not have as much natural sugar as apples so if you are on the sweet end of the spectrum, you can definitely add sugar to the apricots. Thanks for the tip, I will add that in my notes. Julia was an amazing, no fuss chef I used to watch on TV and now on Youtube. She was really inspiring. I haven’t made anything by Ina but my friends have and they rave about her. Good luck and ‘Bon Appetit!’
Yum!
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Have you ever made polenta Julie? This was my first try, I’m sold.
No, not yet!
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