Tarte Tatin

By Cookbook Directory

Recipe overview

Timing details are not provided for this recipe.

A classic French dessert featuring caramelized apples baked under a crisp puff pastry crust.

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Serves:
Dessert
French
Treat
Tart
Desert
DinnerParty

Ingredients

Units: metric

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  • 300 g - Puff Pastry (null)
  • Plain Flour (Dusting)
  • 6 nulls - Braeburn Apples (null)
  • 100 g - Caster Sugar (null)
  • 85 g - Butter (null)
  • Creme Fraiche (to serve)

Instructions

Lightly flour your work surface. Roll the puff pastry into a round shape, 3mm thick. Use a 24cm plate as a guide to cut a 24cm circle from the pastry. Prick the entire pastry circle gently with a fork. Place the pastry circle on a baking sheet. Cover it with cling film. Freeze the pastry while you prepare the apples. Preheat your oven to 180C (160C fan or Gas Mark 4). Peel the apples. Cut them into quarters. Remove the core from each quarter. Take a flameproof 20cm ceramic Tatin dish or a 20cm ovenproof heavy-based frying pan. Add the 100g caster sugar to this dish or pan. Place the dish or pan over medium-high heat. Cook the sugar for 5 to 7 minutes. It should turn into a dark amber caramel syrup and begin to smoke. Remove the dish or pan from the heat. Stir in 60g of diced, chilled butter immediately. To assemble the Tarte Tatin, arrange the apple quarters very tightly in a circle. Place them rounded-side down around the edge of the dish first. Then, fill the middle of the dish with more apple quarters in the same way. Gently press the apples down with your hands to remove any gaps. Melt the remaining 25g of butter. Brush this melted butter over the arranged apples. Bake the dish with the apples in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven. Place the frozen puff pastry disc directly on top of the baked apples. The pastry will quickly defrost. Gently tuck the edges of the pastry down inside the dish, around the apples. Use a knife to prick a few small holes in the pastry. This allows steam to escape during baking. Return the dish to the oven. Bake for an additional 40 to 45 minutes. The pastry should become golden brown and crisp. Let the Tarte Tatin cool at room temperature for 1 hour. After cooling, run a knife carefully around the edge of the dish. This helps loosen the tart. Place a large serving plate over the top of the dish. Make sure the plate has a slight rim to catch any juices. Carefully invert the tart onto the serving plate. Serve immediately with crème fraîche or vanilla ice cream.