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Fruit and Nut Torte with Almond Cream
From Dorothy McNett's recipes at www.dorothymcnett.com. The torte is very crisp and is hand dipped into the almond cream, making this a very tasty dessert or afternoon sweet to enjoy.
1 cup raw almonds
1 cup hazelnuts
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries
1/4 cup dried candied citrus peel
2/3 cup unbleached all purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup local honey
2 squares (1 oz. each) dark chocolate (optional)
1 cup heavy whipping cream (organic is best)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons very finely ground almonds, or almond meal
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier or Cointreau
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line the bottom of a 9 or 10 inch round cake pan or a springform pan with parchment paper to fit the bottom perfectly. Generously brush olive oil or butter over the paper and about 1/2 inch up the side. Set aside. Roughly chop the almonds and hazelnuts and place in a bowl. Chop the apricots, cherries or cranberries and add to the nuts along with the candied citrus peel. Stir in the flour, cocoa powder and cinnamon. Set aside. In a small heavy bottomed saucepan, heat the sugar and honey, stirring constantly and bring to a boil. If using, add the dark chocolate. Reduce heat to medium and gently boil, stirring, for about 2 minutes. Working quickly, pour the hot mixture into the bowl and stir as much as you can to get all of the flour mixed in. Be quick as it will want to harden up. Don't worry, scrape everything into the prepared pan and pat it out smooth. Bake 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, and when cool remove from the pan, removing the parchment. When ready to serve, whip the cream until nice and fluffy. Whip in the powdered sugar. Switch to a spatula and fold in the ground almonds or almond meal and the Grand Marnier and the 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Slice the torte into wedges. Spoon several tablespoons of the almond cream into small demi bowls or cups. To eat, pick up a wedge of the torte and dip into the sauce, eat and enjoy!
Recipe created 2013-10-31.
