I think everyone – or almost everyone – knows the sweet story of the Tarte Tatin…
About Miss Tatin, a hotelier and cook famous for her apple pies, who found herself having to improvise a pie on the spot and buttered a pan, put the apples in it, lined it with pastry and, after baking, turned it over on the plate. One of those ideas that later go down in history… because there is no apple pie better than a Tarte Tatin (and I challenge you to contradict me)
I got there gradually, first by eating the pear variant (amazing) of my friend Martino, then by tasting it in a very famous Parisian pastry shop where I was able to learn how important it is for an extraordinary success that the apples are cut in a certain way.
But I am here to reveal my secrets to you so let’s start and see what we need!
Ingredients:
- 8 Golden apples
- 100 g soft butter
- 250 g granulated sugar
- 1 roll of round puff pastry (or shortcrust pastry)
- an ovenproof baking tray (without plastic handles)
- cinnamon or vanilla if you like…but don’t overdo it!
- lemon or orange juice
Peel the apples and divide them into quarters.
Butter a large non-stick pan and leave the remaining butter in cubes. Turn on the heat and let it melt.
Arrange the apples with the curved part facing down and sprinkle with sugar and mix so that the butter and sugar combine. Cook over high heat for 10-15 minutes until the sugar begins to caramelize and become blond and fluid. During cooking, add a splash of orange or lemon and if you like vanilla or cinnamon.
Optional (but very good!): at this point, remove the apples from the heat with a fork, place them on the cutting board and, with a lot of patience, partially carve them so as to cut them into thin strips without losing the integrity of the segment (without going all the way through): be careful, they are the hottest thing in the world!
At this point, take your tatin pan (it would be ideal with a metal handle) or a baking pan with high edges, butter it well and pour in the blond and liquid caramel in which the apples have cooked. It must be quite abundant.
Place the apples on the bottom of the cake pan: place them nice and close together and with the ones that are left over, make a second layer.
Unroll the puff pastry (or brisèe) and cover the pan, tucking the pastry around the edges. Prick the pastry with the prongs of a fork to prevent it from rising and bake in a hot oven at 180°C for at least 15 minutes.
Then lower the temperature to 130°C and continue to bake until the puff pastry starts to brown.
Remove from the oven and after a few minutes quickly turn the pan over onto the serving plate while it is still hot, so that the apples and caramel do not stick to the pan. Leave to cool and, if possible, serve with vanilla ice cream.
It also comes out very cute in a single-serving “mignon” version!
If you want something more refined you can try the “spiral or ribbon” version, find the recipe here!
