One of my many wonderful cousins stopped by yesterday for an early dinner on her way to an organic seed conference. As it was also her birthday dessert seemed mandatory. Fortunately I was told that butter is okay, nay- encouraged.
I have been putting more energy than I should into designing a new website for recipefiction. You know, something that includes fiction not just recipes. But I was gently reminded that I still need to post here in the meantime. So during my mad flurry to make dinner three hours earlier than normal I did manage to take a few snaps.
I used the same crust recipe as last week’s savory tart but this time I remembered to take some pictures of the process.
I opted to only use 6 apples because I like a high crust to filling ratio for tarte tatin so let your personal preference be your guide.
Recipe: Apple Tarte Tatin
ingredients
- Pate Brisee Dough
- 6-8 apples cored and thickly sliced (I opted for organic pink ladies- a lovely tart/sweet apple, and Dad’s favorite snacker so I know any extra will get eaten-and left the skins on. I also used one of those apple corer/slicers)
- 6 TBS unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- splash of brandy (optional)
instructions
prepare crust through step one.
preheat oven to 425
in the largest frying pan you can manage ( I used the 13 inch cast iron) melt butter over medium/medium high heat, add sugar, apples, and optional brandy. stir to combine. stirring occasionally to prevent sticking cook until caramelized- about 20 minutes- really twenty minutes. the apples will darken a bit when baking but you want a deep golden caramelization before they go in the oven which almost always takes longer than I expect it to.
remove from heat and allow to cool a bit.
this is when I usually roll out my crust (into a 12 inch round) and then pop it in the freezer while I prepare the apples for baking
transfer apples and all their caramelized goodness to a buttered 11 inch cast iron skillet or pie pan. You can either simply pile the apples in or arrange them decoratively.
place prepared crust over apples, tucking in any overhang, and bake for 35-40 minutes until filing is bubbling and the crust is golden brown.
serve warm or at room temperature. It will keep covered and refrigerated for 3-5 days but it will never be quite as delicious as it is in those first few hours.
- Pate Brisee Dough
- 6-8 apples cored and thickly sliced I opted for organic pink ladies- a lovely tart/sweet apple, and Dad's favorite snacker so I know any extra will get eaten-and left the skins on. I also used one of those apple corer/slicers
- 6 TBS unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- splash of brandy optional
-
prepare crust through step one.
-
preheat oven to 425
-
in the largest frying pan you can manage ( I used the 13 inch cast iron) melt butter over medium/medium high heat, add sugar, apples, and optional brandy. stir to combine. stirring occasionally to prevent sticking cook until caramelized- about 20 minutes- really twenty minutes. the apples will darken a bit when baking but you want a deep golden caramelization before they go in the oven which almost always takes longer than I expect it to.
-
remove from heat and allow to cool a bit.
-
this is when I usually roll out my crust (into a 12 inch round) and then pop it in the freezer while I prepare the apples for baking
-
transfer apples and all their caramelized goodness to a buttered 11 inch cast iron skillet or pie pan. You can either simply pile the apples in or arrange them decoratively.
-
place prepared crust over apples, tucking in any overhang, and bake for 35-40 minutes until filing is bubbling and the crust is golden brown.
-
serve warm or at room temperature. It will keep covered and refrigerated for 3-5 days but it will never be quite as delicious as it is in those first few hours.
I used the same crust recipe as last week's savory tart but this time I remembered to take some pictures of the process.
I opted to only use 6 apples because I like a high crust to filling ratio for tarte tatin so let your personal preference be your guide.
This is so gorgeous! Last time I had tarte tatin was in Normandy, France last year…yours rivals theirs in beauty, and very likely taste as well! Thanks for posting!
Thank you!
Tarte Tatin in Normandy sounds like the best place to have it.
Would it make sense to cook the apples in the same skillet you use to bake the pie in?
Kerry,
It most certainly can be done in the same pan. The advantage to two pans (aside from the cleanup, of course) is that a larger pan makes caramelizing the apples considerably easier. Like browning anything, the less crowded it is the easier it is to cook evenly. The transfer also allows me to arrange the apples if I desire and, more importantly, it cools the whole mixture down a bit. If the filling is too hot it can make the crust sort of melt on top of the apples- which is exactly what happened the last time I made tatin in a single skillet.
Great, that makes a lot of sense! I only have one cast iron skillet, so I may try caramelizing the apples in a regular frying pan. Looks delicious!