Apple Tarte Tatin

I bought a proper Tarte Tatin dish a while ago with the intention of practising for work while using up some of my apples. I have only just managed to try it out but having previously only made Tarte Tatin in a cake tin, I can promise you that the proper tin is worth every penny. There are lots of very expensive tatin dishes available to buy but I bought a good quality Silverwood version for less than £15. Being able to make the caramel and cook the apples in the tin that the pastry will be cooked in makes a big difference and makes it much easier to slice the apples in the traditional way and get the tarte to look good at the end. Or at least as good as a Tarte Tatin can look: they are not very photogenic!

A lot of people like to use puff pastry for the base but I prefer not to. Obviously if you don’t want to make your own pastry, or don’t have the time, puff pastry is the perfect option. The pastry I used is very quickly made in a food processor and is an easy alternative if you have the time or the inclination.

Recipe

Ingredients

Pastry

200g plain flour

100g butter

50g caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

Topping

Cored, peeled and halved eating apples: enough to cover the base

150g butter

125g soft brown sugar

Method

Make the pastry: put the flour and sugar into a food processor. Add the butter in small cubes and pulse until the fat is rubbed into the flour. Alternatively put the flour and sugar into a large bowl and rub the butter in by hand.

Add the egg and mix in until it forms a dough. If the pastry is firm enough to roll out it can be rolled out and then covered and stored in the fridge while you prepare the apples. Otherwise refrigerate for a while so that it is firm enough to roll out.

If you have a tarte tatin tin this part can be done directly in the tin. Otherwise you will need to make this part in a saucepan and transfer the caramel and apples to the pan you will be using to bake the tart in.

Cube 100g of the butter and dot around the base of the pan, along with about 100g of sugar:

Butter and sugar in the base of the tarte tatin tin

Arrange the apple halves, cut side up, in the base of the pan:

Arrange the apples in the tin

Dot the remaining butter and sugar on the top of the apples:

Dot the rest of the butter and sugar over the top of the apples

Put the pan over a medium heat and cook until it has turned golden and caramelised:

Bubbling caramel

The apples will cook at the same time.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Transfer to the baking dish if necessary.

Set the oven to 190ºC.

Roll out the pastry into a circle that is slightly larger than the pan. I cut round a cake tin:

Cut out a circle of pastry for the tarte

Carefully lay the pastry over the top of the caramel apples and try to tuck the pastry down the sides:

Lay the pastry on top

Bake for around 20-30 minutes, until the pastry is well browned. I was worried that mine wouldn’t work properly because some of the caramel bubbled up over the pastry (I think where I hadn’t managed to tuck the sides down properly):

Just out of the oven

Luckily it didn’t seem to make a difference. Let the tart cool for about five minutes before loosening around the edges with a palette knife. Put a plate that is larger than the pan over the top and then quickly and carefully turn both upside down so that the tarte inverts onto the plate.

You might need to maneouvre a few of the apples back to their rightful place but I was amazed at how well it worked and how easy it was to turn out.

Tarte Tatin!

I took this tarte to my friend Frin’s for Sunday lunch. She made roast beef, yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes: the whole works. It was absolutely delicious. Dessert was Apple Tarte Tatin and vanilla icecream, which I think makes a good Sunday lunch dessert. Thanks Frin!

I usually try to post on a Wednesday  but had issues with my WordPress account for a few days and couldn’t get into my blog properly, hence the delay. It seems to be fine now and I hope you haven’t had similar problems.

Categories: Baking, Desserts, Fruit, Pastry, Recipes

Tags: apples, autumn, baking, dessert, fruit, pastry, puff pastry, recipe, seasonal cooking, tarte tatin