Kate's Great Meal Tarte Tatin recipe



K

Kate Connally

Guest
Caveat: This was my very first and it was very experimental and not totally successful although very
delicious. So try it my way at your own risk. Or follow the original version exactly, but I can't
vouce for how that will turn out. Kate

TARTE TATIN

Crust: 2 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons sugar 2 sticks (1 cup) cold, unsalted butter,
cut into small pieces
1/2 cup cold ice water

Put flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Add pieces of butter and process until
mixture looks like a coarse meal. Add the water, just a small amount at a time, until the dough
holds together without being too sticky. If the dough is crumbly, add a little more water. Put the
dough into the plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

****: 1 1/2 cups sugar 8 tablespoons water 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 14
med. apples, cut into quarters, peeled, and cored 2 tablespoons sugar 3 tablespoons cinnamon 1
teaspoon cloves

Preheat oven to 375F. Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and cloves together and set aside. In a
12" cast iron or non-stick skillet (must be oven-proof) combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil,
then cook over medium heat until it turns amber colored. Remove from the heat and add the butter.
Arrange the apples decoratively in the skillet on top of the caramelized sugar with the cut sides
up. After you have covered the skillet with one layer of apples, sprinkle them with half of the
cinnamon/clove sugar. Add another layer of apples and sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon/clove
sugar. Return the skillet to the stove and cook over low heat for ten minutes. Be careful not to
burn the caramelized sugar. Remove from the heat and let cool. Roll out the pie crust to a thickness
of about 1/8"-1/4" and place it over the apples. Trim the edges. Bake the **** for about 30-35
minutes, until the apples are no longer hard (but not mushy), and the crust is golden brown. Let
cool and flip onto a platter. Serve warm. ("Tarte Tatin is a really fruity upside-down ****. This is
one of our favorite desserts. I usually use Granny Smith apples, but you can also use peaches or
pears. I love making this dessert with my children Elizabeth, Johnny, Daniel, Sarah Maria, Peter and
Patrick." by Karen Garver Santorum) (I got this recipe off the 1st Traveler's (sic) Choice web site.
It is US Senator Rick Santorum from PA's wife's recipe.)

Notes: I only used this recipe for a very basic guideline. I changed lots of things. I consulted a
number of different recipes and sort of blended them. My version was very tasty but didn't come out
as I would have liked. So be aware! First off. I didn't make the pastry - I used Pepperidge Farm
puff pastry. Also, this recipe doesn't say what kind of apples to use. Other recipes recommended
various apple varieties - Braeburn, Granny Smith, and others. I used McIntosh because that's my
favorite apple - in fact I don't actually care that much for any other apple. So, the McIntosh may
have been part of the problem as the tarte was way too juicy - delicious, but too juicy. I used 8
large apples instead of 14 medium. Also, I didn't use all the sugar-spice mixture. First I reduced
the amount of cinnamon to 1 tablespoon and cloves to ¼ teaspoon. I kept the sugar the same. And when
it came time to sprinkle the mixture on the apples I decided I didn't need all of it and only used
about half of it. I don't care for too heavily spiced apple dishes. I think it turned out perfect
the way I did it. Just the right amount of spice.

I didn't have an oven-proof skillet so I made the caramel as directed in my teflon skillet and then
poured it into the baking pan. For baking the **** I used the 12" cake pan from my tiered wedding
cake set and lined it with heavy-duty foil. Since it was metal I could put it on the burner, after
arranging the apples, as directed. For the crust I rolled out one sheet of the puff pastry to the
size needed to cover the pan and a little extra to tuck down the sides. I baked as directed. Note
that many of the other recipes I consulted said that you could make the **** several hours ahead and
then rewarm it in the oven for serving. I did it that way and wonder if that could have contributed
to the over-juicy-ness. I think in the future I would stop at the point of cooking the apples on the
stove top and then add the crust and bake just before serving. (I like a nice long interval between
dinner and dessert anyway.) Several of my guests were not dessert eaters so I had most of it left
over, which was fine with me, and despite the fact that it was too juicy, the crust didn't get as
soggy as I had feared. I was delicious warmed up slightly in the microwave.
--
Kate Connally “If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.” Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that
smiles back, Until you bite their heads off.” What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all
about? mailto:[email protected]