Apple Tart

This is one of the easiest tarts ever!  Once you have prepared the crust, the rest is a piece of cake.  Wonderful tart for all seasons especially the Fall.  Not too sweet and very light, a favorite of everyone.  A step above the Apple Pie, this tart is sophisticated yet simple .  Serve it with Vanilla ice cream or heavy whipped cream or just plain with tea.

Ingredients for Crust:

• 3 egg yolks
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of Ground vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 Tblsp. water
• 5 oz. butter at room temperature
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

Ingredients for Apple Sauce and Top:

• 2 Lbs Apples (any kind except for Granny Smith or Red Delicious)
• 1 Tblsp. lemon juice
• Pinch of Ground vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 25 oz butter (1/2 stick butter)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tblsp. confectioner's sugar for dusting
• 3 Tblsp. Apple Jelly or Apricot Preserve

Crust:

1. In a large bowl, mix together egg yolks, salt, vanilla, and water.

2. Add in the softened butter in small chunks. 

3. Gradually mix in the flour

4. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough briefly, about 3 times.  (Note on kneading:  using the palm of your hand, press the dough out and with the help of a scraper gather all the dough pieces together.  Repeat this process until dough can be easily formed into a smooth ball.)

5. Form the dough in to a ball, wrap in wax paper and let stand in refrigerator for at least two hours, ideally overnight.

6. On a lightly floured surface using a rolling pin, roll dough flat to 1/8” thickness. (Use a floured silpat or wax paper as the work surface for easier handling.)  Roll dough large enough to fit your tart pan.  Using the rolling pin, place the dough lightly on the pin and place it onto pan carefully centering it at the same time.  Once on the pan, press the sides to the edge of the pan. Use the rolling pin and roll it once on top of teh tart pan to separate all the extra dough. Make sure the dough is upright and tight against the sides of the pan.  You can use any size pan up to 12" for this amount of dough.  (You may need to increase the apples by one or two for a larger tart.)

7. Using a fork, puncture holes in the dough covered pan.  This facilitates the baking and the prevention of air bubbles in the crust. Place the pan in freezer or refrigerator for about one hour.

8. Heat the oven to 350°F and place pan in oven for about 30 minutes to bake halfway.  Then take it out of oven and let it stand to cool.

Apple Sauce :

9. While the dough is in the oven start peeling the apples.  Leave 3 - 4 apples for the top but peel the rest, cutting them into quarters disposing the core and seeds.  Apply the lemon juice to prevent discoloring while peeling.  Place the peeled apples in a 2 quart sauce pan and add the water, vanilla and sugar.  Cover saucepan halfway and let stand on medium low heat for the apples to cook.  This will form an apple sauce for the interior.  Stir this mixture from time to time until thick.  The sauce should be dry with most of the water evaporated.

10. Once apple sauce is made into a thick soft mixture, put aside to cool.  Peel the remainder of the apples (about 3 - 4), into halves and gently dispose the core and seeds making certain the shape of the apples are well kept  Then slice the apples into thin wedges.  For best results, sprinkle of lemon juice to prevent discoloring.

11. Place cooled apple sauce in cooled tart crust.  Even it out on tart and  decorate the apple sauce by the apple wedges as in the picture.  Melt the butter and spread it over the apples.  Dust the apples with the confectioner's sugar and place in the 350°F oven.

12. Bake tart in oven for about one hour.  The apples should be nicely crisp and brown on their edges.

13. Once baked, take tart out of oven and let stand to cool.  Once cool, loosen the tart pan sides and take tart out of pan.  At this point, you can either loosen the bottom of the pan using a long spatula or large knife and then sliding the tart onto your serving dish or simply use the bottom of pan for support and slide it onto the serving dish together with the tart.

14. For the top gloss, add a few drops of water to the apple jelly or apricot preserve in a small saucepan or microwave bowl.  Heat on stove or in microwave (30 seconds) until jelly/ preserve is melted. ( This step is optional - please read below.)

15. Brush jelly or preserve on the apples adding a beautiful gloss to the pastry. (Instead of the gloss, you can also dust the tart with confectioner's sugar if you  prefer a more rustic look.

In the early 19th century, in Victorian England, a Duchess began the trend of serving her friends mid-afternoon tea, tarts and cakes to appease their hunger and quench their thirst between lunch and their late dinner. This became a popular social event and began the tradition that we call High Tea today.