Peaches may be substituted in this recipe from "The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook: Seasonal Foods, Simple Recipes and Stories from the Market and Farm" by Amelia Saltsman (Blenheim Press, Aug. 1, 2007, $22.95).

Seared Nectarine Open-faced Rustic Tart

For the pastry:

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/3 to 1/2 cup ice water

For the filling:

3 pounds nectarines or white peaches (about 12 small)

2 tablespoons full-flavored honey such as buckwheat or eucalyptus

2 tablespoons water or dessert wine such as muscat

2 teaspoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons crushed amaretti or ground almonds

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon sugar

To make the pastry: In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and salt with a fork. Add the butter and cut in using your fingertips or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse sand with some flattened pieces of butter still visible.

Stir in the ice water a little at a time until the dough just sticks together when pressed between your fingertips. Gather the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and flatten into a thick rectangle. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Dough may be made up to one day ahead and refrigerated; in that case, let it sit at room temperature for a bit before rolling.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Start working on the filling.

To make the filling: Rinse and dry the nectarines or, if using peaches, lightly scrub them to remove any fuzz. Cut each fruit in half and remove the pit.

In a small bowl, stir together the honey and water or dessert wine. Set aside.

Place a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in the skillet, "running" the liquid around the pan to coat the surface. When the butter sizzles, add half of the fruit, cut side down, and cook until the cut surface is brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer the fruit, cut side up, to a platter. Add another teaspoon of butter and repeat with the remaining fruit.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and pour the honey mixture into the skillet. Stir, scraping up any brown bits, and then simmer until deep brown, about 2 minutes.

Cut each of the cooled nectarine halves into 3 to 6 wedges.

Assemble the tart: On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 12-by-18-inch rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer to a large, ungreased rimless baking sheet (or use a rimmed baking sheet that has been turned upside-down).

Sprinkle the amaretti crumbs evenly over the dough, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Arrange the nectarine slices, seared side up, in overlapping rows on the dough, staying within the border. Fold the border over to cover the edge of the fruit.

Brush the dough edge with some of the melted butter and sprinkle with the sugar. Stir the "burnt" honey into the remaining melted butter and drizzle over the fruit.

Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 degrees, and bake until the crust is golden and the fruit is bubbly and crust edges are browned, about 25 minutes more. Allow to cool on the pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Use a large offset spatula to loosen the tart from the pan, but leave it on the pan for 30 minutes. Slide the tart onto a platter and serve warm or at room temperature.

Featured in "Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook" (Clarkson Potter, 2005, $40), this tart turns nectarines into "roses" that bloom in a pre-baked pastry shell. To get the look, use a very sharp knife to cut each nectarine in two (position the fruit so it is stem side up, then guide the knife as close as possible to the pit inside the fruit). Next, trim the opposite ends of the fruit, so that you have four nectarine pieces. Cut each piece into several 1/8 inch slices. Starting with the thinnest of the slices, curl the nectarine around itself with the skin side up. Wrap another slice of nectarine around the first, continuing the circular pattern until the "rose" is about 11/2 inches in diameter. Transfer the "rose" to the tart shell, and repeat until the shell has been filled with "flowers." Use any remaining, individual slices to fill gaps.

Martha Stewart's Nectarine Tart

For the tart dough:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup confectioner's (powdered) sugar

2 large egg yolks

11/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons heavy cream

For the tart filling:

8 ripe but firm nectarines (about 21/2 pounds)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 large egg

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon Chambord or brandy

1/4 teaspoon salt

11/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

To make the tart dough: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter and confectioner's sugar. Mix on low speed until combined, about 2 minutes.

Add egg yolks and mix until incorporated, about 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add 3/4 cup flour and mix on low speed just until the flour is incorporated, about 30 seconds. Add remaining 3/4 cup flour along with the salt and cream, and mix just until flour is no longer visible, about 1 minute.

Turn out the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a flattened disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. The dough can be frozen for up to 1 month (in that case, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using).

To bake the tart shell: On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 12-inch round, about 1/4 inch thick. With a dry pastry brush, sweep off excess flour. Fit dough into a 9-inch round fluted tart pan with a removable bottom, pressing into edges. Using a sharp paring knife, trim dough flush with the pan. Chill tart shell until firm, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prick bottom of dough all over with a fork. Line with parchment paper, leaving at least 1 inch overhang. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until the edges are just beginning to turn golden, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove parchment paper and weights; continue baking until lightly golden all over, 20 to 25 minutes more. Remove from oven and cool, still in its tart pan, on a wire rack.

To assemble the tart: Prepare the nectarine slices as detailed above, arranging them in the cooled tart shell.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook, whisking occasionally, until butter solids begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, sugar, lemon juice, Chambord and salt until light in color and doubled in volume, about 2 minutes. Add flour and reserved brown butter, and whisk until well combined.

Pour filling evenly over the fruit in the tart shell. Use a spoon to fill any empty spaces. Bake, rotating the tart halfway through, until crust is golden brown and filling has slightly puffed, about 40 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.