This apricot tart is a rustic, three-step dessert that brings together an Argentine Pastafrola base, a classic French vanilla cream, and brandy-glazed fruit.
To make the Pastafrola pastry, mix 200g of flour with 80g of sugar and 100g of cold, cubed butter using your fingers until it feels like sand. Add one egg, one yolk, a splash of vanilla, and the zest of a lemon. Bring the dough together quickly without overworking it, let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes, then roll it out and fit it into a tart tin. Bake the shell at 180°C for about 20 minutes until it is golden brown, then set it aside to cool.
For the French pastry cream, heat 500ml of milk with a bit of vanilla until it almost boils. While that heats, whisk 4 egg yolks with 100g of sugar and 40g of cornstarch in a bowl. Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking, then put everything back on the stove. Cook it over medium heat, whisking constantly until it becomes a thick, smooth custard. Transfer it to a bowl, cover it so a skin doesn't form, and chill it in the fridge.
The final touch is the seared apricots. Melt a knob of butter in a pan and place your halved garden apricots cut-side down. Sprinkle over a spoonful of sugar and sear them until they are charred and caramelized. Pour in a splash of brandy and let it bubble for a minute until it turns into a thick, sticky syrup.
To serve, simply fill the cool pastry shell with the chilled vanilla cream, top with the warm apricots, and pour the extra brandy syrup over the top.
