Braided Almond Pastry
This lovely braided almond pastry has a flaky, buttery homemade crust, filled with almond frangipane, which has a soft, cake-like texture. The pastry is braided over the filling and sprinkled with almonds before baking.
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Equipment
- Large Baking Sheet (15x20 inches)
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
Ingredients
Pie Dough
- 1 recipe All Butter Pie Dough (enough for two crusts)
Frangipane
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp almond extract
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup finely ground almond flour
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt
Topping
- 1 large white, for egg wash
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
Icing (Optional)
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ¾ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk
Instructions
Dough
- Prepare the pie dough as instructed.
- Wrap in plastic wrap, and let the dough rest and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes, while you make the filling.
Frangipane Filling
- With an electric mixer (stand or hand held), beat the softened butter with the sugar for several minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the eggs, almond extract and vanilla extract; the mixture will be lumpy.
- Add the almond flour, all purpose flour and salt. Beat for several minutes until thick and smooth.
Assembly
- Line a 15x20 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- On a floured surface, roll the dough out into a rectangle measuring 12x18 inches. Use a sharp knife or rolling pastry wheel cutter to trim the edges. Transfer the dough to the baking sheet. This is easiest to do by folding the dough into fourths, then unfolding onto the baking sheet.
- Use a straight edge ruler to lightly mark the dough into thirds, vertically, but don't cut through the dough on these marks. Now trim the corners, about 1 inch from the top and the bottom (as shown in the video tutorial).
- Use a sharp knife or rolling pastry wheel cutter to cut the left and right thirds of the dough, diagonally into 1-inch strips (see the video tutorial).
- Spread the frangipane filling evenly onto the middle section of the dough. Fold the bottom and top edges over the filling.
- Make the egg wash by whisking the egg white with one tbsp water.
- Start folding the strips of dough over the filling, alternating left and right, so it resembles a braid. Brush all the strips of dough with egg wash as you work, so it all sticks together.
- Sprinkle the pastry with the almonds and granulated sugar.
- Set the pan in the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes while you heat the oven.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 375 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
- Bake the pastry for about 45 minutes, until golden brown.
- Let cool for 20 minutes, then cut into slices and serve warm.
Icing
- This pastry is not very sweet as is, so for a sweeter finish, whisk together the icing ingredients and drizzle over the baked pastry when it's hot from the oven.
- Note that the pastry is pictured here without any icing.
Video
Notes
After cooling completely, store the leftover pastry in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days.
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