As you may know, the legend says that this was a mistake, one of the Tatin sisters accidentally dropped the tarte and it flipped over, resulting in this famous version of caramelized apples on top of a crust. (The only time I accidentally flipped a cake, it in no way became a legend). However, this legend has been debunked as the sisters weren't known to be clumsy, on the contrary they were known to be the astute business owners of a highly reputed restaurant. Originally from the central Sologne region of France, this tarte seems to go back generations, sometimes made with apples, sometimes pears, the recipe handed down for generations.
So back to this week's celebration cake, since September is a birthday month for me, as well as for some of my closest friends, I thought why not make this a birthday cake, even if it's not your typical layer cake with icing, it is one of the most delicious cakes.
And as luck would have it, it was a glorious day for pictures the other day, with the apples in a neighbor's orchard as a backdrop and so photo-op worthy, I set up there. No dogs were set off towards us. Every moment was a delicious photo-op. And so was the tarte.
Here's the crust recipe :
100 g softened butter
150 g flour (or gluten-free flour with xathan gum)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons milk (as needed)
1/2 teaspoon salt
In a bowl, mix sugar and butter, add cream and all other ingredients. Knead until smooth, then refrigerate.
6-7 Golden or Granny apples (apples that stay firm when cooked and don't disintegrate). Peeled, cored and cut in half.
Simmer the caramel in a pan over medium heat by stirring together the butter, brown sugar, and cream until slightly bubbling. Add the apples, cook about 4-5 minutes on each side or until apples can bend slightly.
Here’s a trick I’ve learned: lay the apples, curved side down in a pan so they overlap slightly so even if they shrink somewhat, they are still packed together as they cook. Pour the remaining caramel over them. Roll out the dough to a 1/4 inch thickness and cover the entire pan of apples while tucking in the edges, making sure not to leave any open spaces along the edges (to cook apples in a completely covered crust)
Bake in 220 degrees C / 375 F about 35 minutes or until dough is cooked and light brown and apples have cooked completely (test with a toothpick). Remove from oven and leave to cool about 30 minutes.
Here's the tricky part, flip it over while the pan is still warm and the caramel hasn't solidified so the apples don't stick to the pan. When you can hold the pan without burning yourself, cover the pan with a serving dish, and turn over. Seems simple enough right? Do this quickly but precisely. I’ve burned myself more than once when I didn't wait for the pan to cool off to the touch. When too hot and I've used oven mitts, it wasn't precise enough and it wasn't easy to get a grip, so kind of scary. You give it a try, maybe you'll get it on the first try!
Serve with fresh thick cream or even more deadly, vanilla ice cream.
See my post for ice cream (or here's the 2-ingredient ice cream recipe) :
2 cups heavy whipping cream, cold
1/2 vanilla bean paste or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 14-oz can (396 g) sweetened can condensed milk
A pinch of salt.
Whip the cream, fold in the condensed milk with vanilla. Pour into containers and allow to set overnight in the freezer.
Scoop a bit over the warm tarte tatin. Enjoy, everyone !
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