| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 50 min |
| Prep: | 40 min |
| Inactive: | 1 hr 15 min |
| Cook: | 55 min |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 servings |
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 50 min |
| Prep: | 40 min |
| Inactive: | 1 hr 15 min |
| Cook: | 55 min |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter, cut into pea size pieces
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1/4 cup sugar
- Pinch salt
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 to 3 tablespoons ice water
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup apple cider
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
- 1 stick butter, cut into pats
- 6 apples, such as Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, McIntosh or your favorite baking apple, peeled, cored and quartered
- Mascarpone cheese mixed with 2 tablespoon sugar, for garnish
Instructions
- To make the crust: In a food processor combine the butter, flour, sugar, salt and lemon zest. Pulse until it looks like finely grated Parmigiano. Add the egg yolk and 1 to 2 tablespoons of the water. Pulse, pulse, pulse until the mixture comes together. If it seems a bit dry add a little more water and pulse, pulse, pulse. The mixture should come together into a ball. Dump the whole thing out onto a clean lightly floured work surface. Knead the mixture 1 or 2 times only to make it a smooth ball. Using a rolling pin or your fingers roll or press the dough out to an even circle about 11 to 12 inches in diameter. Transfer to a cookie sheet lined with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or preferably overnight, covered with plastic wrap.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- To make the filling: While dough is chilling, place the sugar, apple cider, lemon juice, and vanilla bean seeds in a 10-inch nonstick ovenproof pan. Stir to combine. Over high heat bring the mixture to a boil brushing down the sides of the pan occasionally with a pastry brush dipped in water, if necessary. After 6 to 7 minutes the mixture will eventually begin to turn light brown. Swish the pan around gently to promote even cooking. Cook the mixture for another minute or so until the mixture becomes a much deeper amber color. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, 2 pats at a time. The mixture will bubble up. That is okay, just be VERY CAREFUL not to get any of this on you. When all of the butter has been incorporated, begin to arrange the apples rounded side down in circles. Try to do this neatly and in a pretty way. Remember, the bottom will be the top!
- Return the pan to the burner and cook over medium for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Retrieve the chilled pastry from the refrigerator and place it on top of the apples. Tuck the pastry in around the edges of the pan. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the dough is golden brown and crispy. Let the tart cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Place a serving platter upside down on top of the pastry and CAREFULLY flip the platter and the pan over. Let the tart fall gently out of the pan.
- Slice tart into individual pieces and garnish with a dollop of sweetened mascarpone.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 10 servings |
| Calories | 382 |
| Total Fat | 20 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Carbohydrates | 51 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 37 g |
| Protein | 2 g |
| Cholesterol | 66 mg |
| Sodium | 30 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 10 servings |
| Calories | 382 |
| Total Fat | 20 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Carbohydrates | 51 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 37 g |
| Protein | 2 g |
| Cholesterol | 66 mg |
| Sodium | 30 mg |
Reviews
Thank you for this recipe. When it comes out well, it’s quite pretty, but it’s hard to do consistently. For one thing, the difference between under- and over-cooked filling is about 20 seconds. If the caramel is undercooked, the tart will be runny. If it is even slightly overcooked, the apples will stick to the pan and not fall. Of course where those 20 seconds is a really good guess: you have to understand the consistency and color really well.
Second, the crust is quite titchy to roll out. For that, it’s important to NOT add the water right away but only if the mix isn’t coming together, and then perhaps a teaspoon at a time. Even when I get it right, I find it adds too much sugar to an already sweet dessert.
It’s the best Apple Tart Tatin I’ve made with this recipe.
I modified a bit and added slightly less of most ingredients
Best desert ever I highly recommend this
I am so excited to make this. I am always looking for something a bit different that just maybe my picky husband will eat. Thank you Chef Ann
I bought pre-made puff pastry instead and it worked out perfectly. Needs just about 18 min. baking time for the crust though. Apples were nice and caramelized. Great recipe, and easier with the store bought puff pastry! Made it for Thanksgiving dessert.
Fairly easy to make even though it’s a little labor intensive…. I had a lot of fun making it!
This came out perfect- followed the recipe almost as written. You have to know how to recognize a good caramel sauce by color- cooking times can vary. Mine took about a minute less than the recipe. I was traveling with dessert so I followed the recipe through the cooking of the apples on the stovetop in the caramel sauce. I kept at room temp until I was ready to serve the dessert- reheated the apples and caramel sauce while the oven pre-heated then cooked in the oven as directed. Great addition to Thanksgiving dessert table.
Ok I was nervous at first, but this came out great.
Just totally wrong. The caramel is overcooked and the apples are undercooked. Sugar in the crust, too much sugar on the apples. And it takes three hours. Other recipes take half that time.
Unfortunately, this didn’t turn out as wonderful as I hoped. I followed this recipe exactly as written, however I have a few complaints. First, it was WAY too sweet. Too sweet to eat. Second, the recipe asked to brown the sugar with the lemon juice, vanilla bean, and apple cider for 6 minutes. I should have stopped earlier because the sugar burned more than it should have. Then, on top of that, to cook the apples in the caramel for 20 min and then another 20 min in the oven–needless to say, the sugar burned too much and when it was done, it turned out SO bitter and too sweet — it was inedible. I had to throw it away 🙁 The best thing about this recipe was the crust and the sweetened mascarpone cheese. I was really disappointed because I spent good time on this and followed the recipe exactly as written and had high hopes for a delicious dessert, but unfortunately, the execution failed. I may try it again in the future. Any suggestions to correct this? Thanks.