Low Carb Crustless Apricot Tart (a Frangipane)

Love tarts but hate rolling out pie crusts? This crustless, low carb fruit tart with a frangipane filling is easy and not overly sweet. Frangipan is typically layered on top of a crust as a filling, with the fruit then placed on top of the almond cream and baked. Because this recipe is designed to lower the carbs, there is no crust, but rather just the almond cream filling baked with the fruit.

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RECIPE
What is frangipane?
How to Modify Tarts to Low Carb
Method & Ingredients for Apricot Frangipane

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What is Frangipane?

When I scored a box of the plumpest, freshest, tastiest apricots I had ever seen, I knew I needed to make some sort of tart. I am definitely not a baker and I usually avoid carbs and hence pie doughs, but I really wanted to do good by these apricots.

I started with a classic tart using homemade shortbread dough (see photo below) and it was great. Not exactly easy for a non-baker however, and I made a mess with trying to get the dough into the tart pan. Not to mention the hassle of cutting in the butter and blind baking the dough to the perfect golden brown (which mine was not).

The recipes all said making the tart dough was easy, but I did not find it quick or easy. The other thing that the tart dough was not, was low carb. Tasty, but not low carb.

I then stumbled across a recipe for a fruit tart that included a filling of Italian origin called frangipane. Frangipane is essentially a dessert filling made from ground almonds, butter, eggs, a little sugar, and a small amount of unbleached all-purpose flour.

It is sometimes referred to as almond cream and is typically used as a filling for pastries like croissants or fruit tarts.

How to Lower the Carbs in Fruit Tarts

While fruit in and of itself has carbs, the crust in a fruit tart is generally the biggest culprit. After a bit of research it appeared that a frangipane alone might serve as a soft, creamy medium to hold the fruit in a “tart-like” fashion, similar to a clafoutis.

I have made a bing cherry clafoutis many times, which is basically fresh fruit (Often cherries) baked in a flan-like filling without a crust. Using frangipane as a means to a crustless fruit tart seemed to be similar to the clafoutis. It was definitely easier than messing with a dough.

Frangipan is typically layered on top of a crust as a filling, with the fruit then placed on top of the almond cream and baked. Because this recipe is designed to lower the carbs, there is no crust, but rather just the almond cream filling baked with the fruit.

Easy Method & Ingredients for Apricot Frangipane

The recipe is simple, and can be made with a few different methods—in the food processor, standing mixer, or stirred in a bowl by hand—but basically it calls for adding all of the ingredients at once.

There is no rolling out of dough, no blind baking a crust, no cutting in butter bit by bit, and no crimping the dough to make it pretty. It is a simple batter spread in a tart pan with fruit layered on top and then baked together. My kind of dessert!

Other Exceptional Fruit Tart Recipes

I did make an apricot tart with a shortbread crust also and it definitely was tasty. Probably the best recipe of all would be with the shortbread crust the frangipane filling and the fresh apricots on top. If you’ve got the time and like to bake I’d definitely give that a try!

For the absolute easiest tart in the whole world, check out this 2-Ingredient Jam Tart

For two other crustless fruit desserts, see this Crustless Rhubarb Custard or this Low Carb Cherry Clafoutis.

If you prefer the freeform tarts known as crostatas or galettes, you won’t want to miss making this savory tomato crostata with those fresh Summer tomatoes.