Apricot Charlotte

Name: Apricot Charlotte with Sponge Batter - Tall Pie Recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: Eggs 7 (7 whites and 6 yolks go into the batter); Sugar 1.5 cups (270 g); Wheat flour 1.5 cups (195 g); Vanillin to taste (liquid is best); Orange zest to taste; Apricots (large, almost ripe) 1 kg; Vegetable oil 1 tsp; Flour 1 tbsp (10 g); Powdered sugar for dusting; Fresh mint a few sprigs, optional

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1 h 30 mins

In fruit season we often bake all sorts of simple pies, filling them with seasonal fruit that shows up for a short while and then vanishes. This was our first time making an apricot charlotte: apples haven’t appeared yet, and apricots haven’t left the shops. It turned out wonderfully tasty and, what’s notable, we got a tall pie with a gorgeous, well-baked crust.

A sweet dessert of fresh fruit baked in sponge batter is what we call a charlotte here. The classic charlotte, however, differs in both principle and ingredients. It is believed that such a dessert was first made in Germany, and the idea was to bake fruit cooked down with sugar in a dough, or bread soaked in butter and egg. The versions common here are known as the Parisian charlotte.

Put simply, it’s a fruit pie with sponge batter. The filling is usually firm, tart apples, but charlotte with apricots, peaches, strawberries or cherries is quite common too. With berries, custard is often added, mixed in and spread into the cooled baked pie.

The idea for this recipe came from our daughter Yulia, many thanks to her. I really wanted an apple pie, but it wasn’t the season. Then I spotted large, slightly underripe but soft apricots. Everything fell into place. The apricot halves turned out quite big and sweet, so I had to adjust the batter and the baking temperature. Next to this one in the series is a pear charlotte.

You need a metal springform pan with high sides so the large apricots can be completely covered with batter. At the very end of baking, raise the temperature briefly to get a nice crust.

Even when apricots are slightly underripe, they are already very sweet, though a little firm. Such fruit is ideal for an apricot charlotte: it doesn’t release juice and doesn’t float. Since apricots are less tart than apples, you can put less sugar in the batter. I read somewhere that a charlotte can also be made with thick apricot jam or even dried apricots, soaked first. The pie turns out tasty and sweet, and the tangy apricots fit the overall flavor perfectly.

10 ingredientsTo the recipe

More with sponge cake

Ingredients

6-8 servings

For the batter
Eggs 7 (7 whites and 6 yolks go into the batter)
Sugar 1.5 cups
(270 g)
Wheat flour 1.5 cups
(195 g)
Vanillin to taste (liquid is best)
Orange zest to taste
For the filling
Apricots (large, almost ripe) 1 kg
For the pan and serving
Vegetable oil 1 tsp
Flour 1 tbsp
(10 g)
Powdered sugar for dusting
Fresh mint a few sprigs, optional

Step-by-step recipe

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Apricots

Don’t use overripe apricots: they turn into jam and the charlotte falls apart. It’s best to buy large, very slightly underripe apricots. For an even layout, the fruit should be roughly the same size.
Wash the apricots and dry them thoroughly.
Cut them in half and discard the pit. Any remains of the stem are not needed either. Remove overripe and spoiled halves as you go.

Sponge batter

You’ll need a mixer to make the sponge batter.
Put 7 egg whites and 6 yolks into the mixer bowl.
Add the sugar and mix the eggs with the sugar until the mixture is smooth.
Add vanillin, preferably the liquid kind sold in shops. Beat the egg mixture on high speed until it becomes foamy and increases in volume.
Add the orange zest and beat thoroughly once more.
Add the sifted flour and, with the mixer on low speed, make a smooth batter that looks like thick honey.
It should flow slowly off the beaters. The batter must be perfectly uniform, without air bubbles.

Pan and assembly

You need a metal springform pan with high sides so the large apricots can be completely covered with batter.
Grease the pan thoroughly with 1 tsp vegetable oil, both the bottom and the sides all the way to the rim.
Add 1 tbsp flour (10 g) to the pan. Tilting and shaking the pan, spread the flour over the bottom and sides.
The flour should stick to the oil and coat the whole inside of the pan evenly.
Pour a quarter of the batter into the pan and spread it in an even layer across the bottom, wall to wall.
Arrange the apricot halves on this layer standing on their edge, leaning against each other. The halves should be packed tightly.
Carefully pour the remaining batter over the apricots. The batter must seep between the fruit and fill all the gaps.
Don’t fill to the very brim; leave a small margin of 1-1.5 cm, as the batter may run over. The sponge batter rises a little during baking, so the charlotte will end up slightly taller.
Tap the sides and bottom of the pan lightly with your palm so the batter flows into any gaps it didn’t reach and any visible bubbles on the surface disappear.

Baking and serving

Preheat the oven to 180°C. The oven must be well heated.
Put the pan in the oven and bake the apricot charlotte until the sides and top begin to brown. Usually after 45 mins the batter is nearly done: a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the pie comes out dry.
For a beautiful, crisp crust, raise the temperature to 200°C and bake for 10 more mins. Make sure the surface of the pie doesn’t burn.
Take the pie out of the pan and transfer it to a board or a large plate. Let the charlotte cool completely.
Dust the surface of the charlotte generously with powdered sugar through a sieve.
Cut the pie into pieces with a very sharp knife, into wedges if it’s round.
It’s best to cut straight down so the sugar-dusted crust doesn’t crumble and the sponge isn’t squashed. Ideally the apricots inside shouldn’t fall out but stay in place.
Arrange the pieces on dessert plates. You can dust them with more powdered sugar and decorate with sprigs of fresh mint. Serve the pie with tea or just as a treat.
I don’t know how long a charlotte keeps, since ours gets eaten very quickly. But I think if you leave it for the next day, it’s better to cover the pie with a napkin so it dries out less.
The pie turned out exceptionally well, even better than we expected. Tea time was a great success.