xmas week 2025 - apple galette with halva frangipane
17 Dec 2025
Welcome to Day 3 of Xmas Week 2025. I do love a frangipane tart but when I spied a tahini version this year I was intrigued. Then I discovered this Susan Spungen halva variation and with an unopened packet of halva in my pantry, I was sold.
When Susan made her galette she used a shortcrust pastry base but I decided to make a puff pastry version. As a technical exercise I made my own puff pastry but I beg of you, please don't. At Christmas time it's false economy spending time rolling, folding and chilling pastry when you can buy excellent puff pastry like Careme.
Whilst this galette is best made on the day, putting the whole thing together shouldn't take you too long if you buy the puff pastry. The frangipane and the glaze can be prepared in advance. The apples can be sliced ahead of time and placed into a bowl of water and lemon juice to stop them browning then just dried on a tea towel before assembling the tart.
I can't tell you how good this smells coming out of the oven. If you're in the Northern Hemisphere for Christmas, serve the tart warm with cream while if you're in the Southern Hemisphere cold with cream is the way to go.
Here's the recipe for you which makes a 23 x 32cm galette which should serve 8. For all my recipes, I use a 250 ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon. All eggs are 60 grams and my oven is a conventional oven not fan forced, so you may need to reduce your oven temperature by 20°C.
Apple galette with halva frangipane
One 27 x 36cm sheet of all butter puff pastry or a half batch of home made wholewheat puff pastry
Halva frangipane 100g plain halvah, finely crumbled
25g very soft unsalted butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
15g light brown sugar
25g plain flour
½ tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt
Filling
2 medium apples
25g unsalted or salted butter, melted
30g raw sugar
2 medium apples
25g unsalted or salted butter, melted
30g raw sugar
Glaze
2 tbs apricot jam
1 tbs boiling water
To serve
Thick cream
Method
Frangipane
Combine all of the ingredients in a small food processor and mix until well blended. Chill until needed.
Combine all of the ingredients in a small food processor and mix until well blended. Chill until needed.
Assembly
Place an upturned baking tray onto the centre rack of the oven then preheat the oven to 200°C, conventional. Line a second baking sheet with baking paper.
If you've made your own puff pastry, lightly flour the work surface and roll out the dough into a 27 by 36cm rectangle then transfer the dough rectangle to the prepared baking sheet. Brush water around the edge of the pastry then make a border by folding in the edges. To make a decorative edge, crimp the dough by pressing down with the tines of a fork. Prick the base of the dough about 25 times with the fork to prevent it from puffing up whilst baking.
Spread the halva frangipane over the dough. Peel, quarter, and core the apples, and cut them into 1/4-inch (6-mm) slices. Arrange the apple slices in overlapping rows over the frangipane-covered pastry. Brush the apples with the melted butter and sprinkle the apples and the crust with the raw sugar.
Place the galette onto the preheated tray and bake until the apples are tender and beginning to brown, about 35-45 minutes.
While the tart bakes, prepare the glaze. Place the jam and water into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Boil for 30 seconds, then remove from the heat.
When the tart is ready, slide it off the baking paper and onto a wire rack. While still warm, glaze the tart with the apricot jam then cut the tart into squares and serve with generous spoonfuls of cream.
The tart is best served the day it's made but it can be kept covered in the fridge overnight.
I can't tell you how good this smelt coming out of the oven. If you're in the Northern Hemisphere for Christmas, serve the tart warm topped with cream while if you're in the Southern Hemisphere cold with cream is the way to go.
See you all again tomorrow with another bake for Xmas Week 2025.
Bye for now,
Jillian
