Social Kitchen

This tart is basically the perfect last minute Thanksgiving dessert.  It’s perfect because it basically takes seconds to make (okay, about 30 minutes, if you make your own pie crust – which I will encourage!  It’s Thanksgiving, after all).  It’s super pretty – it looks like it came directly from a bakery.  And it has “French” in the name!  There literally is nothing else in a dessert that will impress a crowd.

But oh man, the flavor is what will impress the most!  This is an apple pastry in all that a pastry should be.  It has all of its ingredients highlighted in their purest form: apple, butter, sugar, so you can be sure to really taste all of them.  This is a true apple dessert.

I mean, let’s talk about this.  I’m not gonna lie.  I am a cinnamon fiend.  I will sprinkle cinnamon on just about everything, and to me, an apple pie isn’t real until it gets some spices to really dress the apples.  But no, this was apple at its best, and if I dare say it, my favorite apple dessert to date.  Make it.  Today, actually, because you don’t have much time left until Thursday!  Your guests will love you.

French Apple Tart (ever so slightly adapted from Saveur)

A couple notes: I had a 9 inch tart pan, so I made a big tart and a mini tart out of this.  But, how about not making a tart at all?!  I think that you could easily make this into a galette.  Also, the original recipe called for 7 apples.  I definitely did not need all 7, but make sure that you use the 4 listed.

Pie Dough

1 1/4 cup flour

12 tbsp. unsalted butter, cold and cubed, divided

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup sugar + 1 tbsp., divided

3 tbsp. ice water

4 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

1/2 cup apricot jam

Whiz flour, 8 tbsp. butter, salt, and 1 tbsp. sugar in a food processor until it’s crumbly like cornmeal.  Add the iced water and process until the dough forms into a ball.  Take out of food processor and wrap in plastic wrap for about an hour.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface into a 13 inch circle.  It will be thin.  Transfer to an 11 inch tart pan.  Trim the edges and chill for another hour.

Preheat the oven to 375.  Tightly layer the apple slices to form any design you want.  Make it tight enough so you use all of the apples.  Sprinkle with the 1/4 cup sugar and dot with the remaining 4 tbsp. of butter.

Bake for about 60 minutes, or until the apples and the crust has turned a deep golden brown.

Warm the apricot jam in a small saucepan over low heat, until it is loose.  Pour through a strainer.  After the apple tart has cooled for about 10 minutes, brush the warmed jam on top of the apples as a glaze.  Let cool completely before slicing.

This entry was posted on November 22, 2011 at 10:11 am and is filed under fruit, pies and tarts, sweet, Uncategorized.