We were in the baking mood, my granddaughter and I, and there was a bowl of apples sitting on the counter asking to be used. Since we were planning a small dinner party, dessert seemed to be the order of the day, and apples were drafted into service.
What to make?
Baked apples? Apple pie? Perhaps, but my lovely teenager wanted to try her hand at a fancy French tart she had seen with apples slices arranged over the top. I guided her (that is, made her do all the work!), but let her make the final decision on the ingredients, and the result was a beautiful and delicious tart. I’m pretty sure she’ll make this one again.
What would Mom make?
We used my mom’s basic pastry recipe, but used hon-hydrogenated vegetable shortening in place of the lard in the original, my twist. Mom always said a bit of lemon juice or vinegar keeps the dough tender, and her crust was never tough so I agree. Since the recipe makes two crusts, we tucked one in the freezer for another day. If you are going to the effort of making pie crust, no reason to cut the recipe in half, when you can have a disc ready for you in the freezer for another day. That planning ahead has made easy work of many a weeknight meal.
Start with what you already like
While we wanted to keep it all in the family and use Mom’s pastry recipe, but any basic pastry you love will work here. If you use a prepared pie crust from the market, I won’t tell but look for one that uses butter and not a bunch of chemicals and trans-fats; it will taste that much better.
Modern conveniences
The food processor was put to work here to make the dough quick and easy, but the traditional way in a large bowl with a pastry blender works just as well, adding only a little time. When my mother got her first Cuisinart, it was food processor all the way for her, and she never looked back! She loved kitchen gadgets, and this was the queen of them all. I love it too, but I admit that sometimes I just feel like making it as my grandmother did, using my fingers to blend the butter into the flour. Plus, the bowl is easier to clean than the processor. There’s always that to consider.
A firm apple, not applesauce
Golden Delicious and Granny Smith went into this tart because that is what we hand and they are both firm, with the former having the best flavor for a tart. A soft apple would disintegrate and turn into more applesauce. We need some shape here, because it’s half about the pretty, the other half about the flavor.
Just the right spices
Jaina decided on the spices starting with the important cinnamon, and she also felt like adding a bit of freshly grated nutmeg as well, her twist. It was just right on the seasoning with the apple flavor shining through. She also tucked a pretty raspberry in the center, just for show. You gotta add some flourish.
Apple butter or applesauce
We kept the rest simple, just a layer of apple butter, which I also had on hand. However, we could have used a favorite applesauce here, a perfect substitution.
Save that cooking liquid
The excess juice from the softening of the apples was put to good use too. We thickened it up and used it for a sauce in the finished product. The result was not overly sweet, a perfect end to a meal that was rich in apple flavor and, in our home, memories as well.
Jaina’s Apple Tart
The crust:
- 3 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 ½ sticks (12 tbsp.) unsalted butter, or vegan butter, cold, cubed
- ¼ cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening, cold, cubed
- 2/3 cup or so ice water
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice
The filling:
- 5 or so golden delicious or other firm apple
- ¼ cup apple cider
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- Few grates of nutmeg
- 1 ½ cup apple butter or applesauce
To garnish:
- 2 tbsp. apricot preserves
- Bit more cider and maybe apple brandy
To make the crust, combine flour and salt in your food processor. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until it resembles coarse sand with a lot of pea-sized lumps in it. Add about half the water and the lemon juice and pulse a few times. Continue adding the ice water a tablespoon at a time until the mixture starts to clump together. This doesn’t take long. Open it up and squeeze a bit in the palm of your hand. If it holds together, you are done even if it looks a mess. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and gently press into a large mass, then cut into two. Flatten each into a disc and refrigerate for 30 minutes or freeze.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and have your tart pan with removeable bottom ready.
Roll out one disc into just larger than your tart pan, then press into the pan as evenly as possible. Make sure to press firmly against the sides and tamp down the bottom as well, and prick it all over with a fork. Crumple up a pan-sized piece of parchment (to make it more pliable, a Martha Stewart trick) and smooth out. Place over the bottom crust and fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice. Bake the shell for 20 minutes, then remove the weights and continue baking until the crust just starts to get a bit of color. Let cool.
Peel and core the apples. Cut 4 or 5 of them into thin slices, trying to keep the thickness even, a quarter inch or so. How many will depend on the size of your apples, but you want enough to fill the whole top of the tart. Make a bit more than you think you need.
Place in a large skillet with apple cider, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a few grates of nutmeg. Simmer five minutes or so, just until the apples are pliable, remember they will cook again and you don’t want applesauce. Remove from heat, drain over a bowl to reserve the liquid, and turn out the apples onto a sheet to cool.
Spread the apple butter or sauce evenly over the bottom of the cooled tart shell. Place the cooled apple slices in a decorative pattern over the top of the applesauce. Start at the outside, and make concentric circles up to the middle. At the middle, use the smallest apples to form a rosette in the center. OR, just place the apples in whatever pattern you like. If you have a pretty berry to tuck in the center, go ahead and use it.
Bake for 30 more minutes, the edges should be lightly browned now, and remove from the oven to cool to at least just warm. Thin the apricot jam with a bit of apple brandy and warm slightly. Brush this on top if the apples for a nice shine.
Add a bit more cider to the reserved apple cooking liquid along with a splash of apple brandy if you like. Bring to a boil and reduce by about a third, then swirl in a tablespoon of butter off heat to thicken.
Remove the tart from its pan and place on a decorative plate. Slice and serve with a drizzle of the syrup and perhaps a scoop of favorite ice cream.
© Copyright 2024– or current year, The New Vintage Kitchen. Dorothy Grover-Read. Unattributed use of this material and photographs is strictly prohibited. Reposting and links may be used, provided that credit is given to The New Vintage Kitchen, with active link and direction to this original post.
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Certainly beautiful enough to grace a French patisserie and I’m sure it was very delicious, too! 😊
Thank you! It disappeared quickly!
I bet it has!
In our family, we call it ‘no keeping quality!’
Yum!! Beautiful and looks soooooo good. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks Jana! It’s a fun recipe.
Your granddaughter is a chip off the old block. A beautifully executed apple tart.
Thanks Bernie! She is indeed a chip off the block, and is going to be a much better baker than me!
This looks delicious!!
Thank you so much! I was quite proud of her!
Beautifully done, Jaina’s tart looks perfect.
Thank you Karen. She did a great job!
It looks beautiful and sounds wonderful! Jaina is quite the cook!
Jenna
Thank you Jenna! She did a great job.
Sounds great
Thanks! She did a great job!
So pretty, and I love that scoop of ice cream on the slice! Jaina is very adventurous from the sound of it!
She had really good instincts!
Irresistible! Apple pie is my all time favorite, and yours looks so inviting. I’ve learned to add a slice of cheddar on the side. 😛
Oh yes! Apple pie and sharp cheddar is one of our all-time favorites!
It looks and sounds delightful, and would not be out of place in one of those lovely cake shops I see whenever I go over to France. The suggestion of apple brandy gives it a real Normandy feel.
Thanks Kevin! She really did herself proud. And it is best with the apple brandy,
My mouth is watering.
Thanks! She made everyone’s mouth water at the table!
This looks especially good to me today. I have been watching my dessert eating so that I can lose a few pounds before summer.
But this has little sugar in it and would look so pretty for a tea party. Which I will be hosting this summer!
Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks Nancy! It’s pretty light, and a tiny piece is just good for the mood!
My, my, my, but that looks delicious and beautiful too.
Thanks Judy! It was a real treat!
That does look good!
Thank you! She appreciates this.
It looks beautiful and delicious!
Thanks Mimi! She did a great job.
this tart looks so pretty! I love the plate the slice is served on too. How marvellous to bake with your granddaughter.
Thank you! It’s always such a treat to bake with the grandkids.
I thought that was a cherry in the center until I read it was a raspberry. A beautiful presentation!
Thank you Julia! I think that little berry dressed it up nicely.
I like the addition of apple butter or sauce!
Thanks so much! It added just the right note to the dessert.
Applelicious! 🍃🍎 The dessert that never disappoints. 😍
Aplelicious indeed! So tasty. She did great.
More than the obvious deliciousness of this recipe and the wonderful way you explained the cooking process to us, it is the togetherness in the kitchen with your granddaughter that stands out the most in this gorgeous post. That is what it’s all about …. teaching our kids and grandkids the basics of cooking, then standing back, allowing them to “rise” to the occasion and flourish. Cooking is not just a skill …. it’s an art, a love affair with food. This is an inspiring read, not to mention one that got my mouth watering for a slice of Jaina’s Awesome Apple Tart! Good on you, D! 🍎❤️🍎
Thank you so much my dear friend! That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it, helping to create that confidence in knowing a pinch of this or that is what would be perfect, and imagining how it will taste. I was extremely proud of her confidence, she knew exactly how she wanted to spice it.
DOROTHY yummm!!
You are most welcome! There nothing that compares to cooking with the kids.
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Looks delicious. Time shared with your granddaughter is precious!
Thanks Jan! There’s nothing better than time with the kids in the kitchen!
This does indeed look pretty! And I’m sure it was delicious. I would make this like a tarte tatin, which has less steps as no blind baking is needed because the bottom is on the top. I have never heard of using something acid in the crust to make it more tender, so that is interesting. I like the crust to be flaky or almost brittle. The trick I use for that is to first mix the butter with 3/4 of the flour and then mix in the remaining flour briefly to get pea-sized pieces of dough that are coated with flour. This will create layers like puff pastry. Full description for example in this recipe: https://stefangourmet.com/2016/04/23/soul-food-part-4-sweet-potato-pie/
I’ll have to try that technique Stefan, it sounds interesting. I suspect coating some of the flour with the butter is the key here. Always looking for ways to make the pastry even more tender, so thanks for the tip.
We love a tarte tatin! We made one at Thanksgiving this year instead of the traditional apple pie, and it was a hit with all its gorgeous caramel! I used my trusty cast-iron frying pan!
Such a pretty looking treat!
Thank you! It was lovely to behold, then to devour!
This is beautiful. I like the raspberry center and the idea for the glaze sounds delicious. Very yum.
Thanks Ally! This started as the pretty, and delivered in flavor.
This is so very pretty! You know you will always catch my attention with anything “pie” or “tart”! And what a gift to be able to do this with your granddaughter. We have lots of apples from our CSA, so I will have to whip up an apple tart soon. Thank you for the inspiration!
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Dorothy, this is so very pretty! You know you will always catch my attention with anything “pie” or “tart”! And what a gift to be able to do this with your granddaughter. We have lots of apples from our CSA, so I will have to whip up an apple tart soon. Thank you for the inspiration! Sorry for the duplicate comment. For some reason I was marked as “anonymous”!
Oh that Anonymous!
Thank you Angela. We had lots of apples from our CSA, so in they went!
Simply mouthwatering . . . and yes to the ice cream!
The tart is beautiful and I’m sure delicious. What wonderful memories you and your granddaughter will have from baking together. I fondly remember baking with my grandmother. I’ve never put vinegar or lemon juice in my crust. I’ll have to try this, Dorothy.
Thank you Mary! These are the precious memories indeed. Kitchen and food memories are so strong in children, they become part of who we are.
Do try the vinegar or lemon juice!
That filling sounds so good Dorothy. I bet the apple cider adds a lot of flavor.
Thanks Diane! The cider does add flavor and some tartness, and really contributes nicely to the finished sauce.
I have never used golden apples for my pastry bakes. Hmmm!🤔
The Golden Delicious are my go-to for any tart. A wonderful flavor, especially if you sprinkle with a bit of Calvados!
I’ll give the lemon juice tip a try next time I’m making a pastry, Dorothy. As for the ‘work’! Your granddaughter’s cutting skills are way up there; the pie result looks fab. All in all – it looks like you’ve another lover of cooking on your hands (down the generations). A wonderful way to connect. 💖
Thank you Carolyn! We always have fun in the kitchen, and she has good instincts, which is a plus.
There is nothing better than apple pie!
I know! It definitely has a place in our food memory!