The quintessential French apple tart is flaky, soft, tender, and full of flavor. I love each bite.

In France, we have a love relationship with apple tart—plain-cut apples with a hint of sugar and butter baked to perfection.

Apple Tart with Hazelnut Frangipane

Or, Tarte de Pommes a la Normande has a velvety custard made of eggs and heavy cream with sugar.

Subscribe to Giangi's Kitchen!

Get my FREE email series: 5 Days of Easy Elevated Recipes plus a weekly newsletter!

First Name
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

And here is another version with hazelnut frangipane on a flaky pastry. Fresh roasted hazelnuts, then ground into fine pieces with sugar, butter, and egg. And I must say it is beautiful.

Do not be concerned if the bottom on the sides gets a bit burnt. That is a normal process of the juices of the apple and the frangipane.

However, do create a pattern with your apples. Here, I have two rows going in one direction and one in the opposite. Be creative and put your flair into this apple tart.

In this Article

What is Frangipane?

Essentially, frangipane is an almond filling, almost like a thick cream. Not to be confused with marzipan, an almonds sugar paste that is so dense and used to decorate cakes.

Frangipane is a mixture of butter, eggs, ground almonds, and sugar. Not as attractive in color, but super savory with all your baking tarts.

With this recipe, we will use hazelnuts, which give your apple tart a more nutty, rich flavor.

There are so many wonderful recipes you can make with puff pastry and this easy apple strudel is one of them.

apple tart with hazelnut frangipane

What is a Tart?

A tart can be a savory or a sweet baked dish with a pastry on the bottom, filled with either fruit or sometimes with an egg custard.

Usually presented on a round form with an open top.

Sometimes you will see them referred to as “Tartalette”. It is the same, however, more diminutive in size or as an individual serving.

Always make it short-walled.

Cooking tips and step-by-step instructions to create this excellent Apple Tart with Hazelnut Frangipane

Some recipe tips and notes to help you along:

  • Remove as much of the outer thin brown shell of the hazelnuts as possible before placing them in the food processor. You can achieve this by rolling the hazelnuts back and forth n between a paper or cloth towel. Repeat when removed from the oven.
  • Sweet and unsweetened butter are interchangeable if you do not have sweet butter on hand.
  • When you place the peeled and cut apples in a bowl while finishing up all the other ingredients,  you may want to squeeze a small amount of lemon over it so they will not turn brown on you.
  • I use parchment paper over your cookie sheet. Silpat, It will work beautifully as well here. With the parchment, you can leave it on it and present it to your guests.
  • Spread the frangipane cream with a pastry knife, leaving a border so the pastry can puff well and keep the apples in place.
  • Arrange the apples in a pretty pattern.
  • You can do an egg wash for the crust to give it that beautiful glazed look. Optional, as we will be using the Calvados at the end.
  • Cool on a wire rack. The rack will allow the tart to cool off uniformly and faster as air circulates underneath.
  • The Calvados and orange marmalade mix is so delicious over it. It binds all the flavors together and gives it that beautiful glazed shiny look.
  • Do serve it at room temperature. The hazelnut frangipane, when hot, can scold you when not cooled off.
apple tart with hazelnut frangipane

What to serve with this apple tart?

Vanilla ice cream is always the favorite, of course. Whipping cream or Chantilly is just as delicious.

Have tea or coffee for an afternoon snack.

With a small glass of Brandy or Cognac sitting by the fire! Make it a romantic evening with your loved one.

Slice it into squares. Easy to handle. Remember, it is a flaky pastry; therefore, you must serve it on a plate.

Can I use another type of apple?

Jonagold and Braeburn are the perfect amounts of sweetness and keep their texture well when baked.

Honeycrisp and Cortland are other wonderful apples you can use with this tart.

Unfortunately, Red Delicious is not the favorite of baking, as they fade in taste and, when baked, will not hold the shape, and your tart will fall apart.

A great holiday dessert, light and full of flavor.

apple tart with hazelnut frangipane

Want more delicious dessert recipes?

Check these out:

Cranberry Sauce with Apricots, Raisins and orange

Strawberry Apple Pie

Quatre Quarts

Equipment and ingredients used to prepare this apple tart with hazelnut frangipane

A Chef Giangi Pick
Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker's Half Sheet, 2-Pack
$27.99

I have four and use them all the time. The BEST!

Buy On Amazon
This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
04/16/2025 12:35 pm GMT


Apple Tart with Hazelnut Frangipane

5 from 14 votes
apple tart with hazelnut frangipane
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 8 people
The quintessential French apple tart. Flaky, soft, tender, and full of flavor. I love each bite.

Ingredients 

FOR THE FRANGIPANE

  • 1 cup hazelnuts, shelled
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon sweet butter
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR THE TART

  • 1 puff pastry, Pepperidge Farm
  • 4 gala apples, peeled, cores removed, and sliced in ½ inch thickness
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons sweet butter
  • 1 cup orange marmalade, or jam
  • 2 tablespoons Calvados

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375F
  • Place the hazelnuts on a cookie sheet and roast in the hot oven for 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer the nuts to a food processor, add the ¼ cup sugar, egg, butter, and vanilla extract. Process until creamy paste forms.
  • Roll out the puff pastry to 15 inches long by 10 inches wide. Transfer it to a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Spread the frangipane on the dough stopping about 1 ½ inch away from the edges.
  • Arrange the apple slices over the frangipane on an overlapping pattern to cover well the frangipane underneath. Fold the edge of the dough over the apples to make a 1 to 1 ½ inch border.
  • Sprinkle 2 to 3 tablespoons sugar over the apples letting some of the sugar sprinkled over the border dough. Break the 2 tablespoons of sweet butter and scatter them over the apples. Bake for 1 hour the dough should be nicely crystallized all over.
  • Remove the finished tart from the oven and cool on a wire rack until still a bit warm to the touch. Mix together the orange marmalade with the Calvados and glaze the surface of the tart spreading it carefully on the apples and the border crust. Use the back of the spoon to easily spread.
  • Serve at room temperature cut into small wedges. Serve with whipping cream or ice cream.

Nutrition

Calories: 505kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 145mg | Potassium: 242mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 45g | Vitamin A: 238IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 2mg

Giangi’s Kitchen provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as a registered dietician does not calculate them.

Did you make this?

Leave a comment below and tag @giangiskitchen on Instagram

Visit my Amazon Storefront for my selection of favorite kitchen essentials. I only recommend equipment that I use and love.

Giangi's Kitchen Amazon Storefront