A Sweet Taste of Heaven: Apple Tart

Apple Tart

This is a heavenly dessert. The granny smith apples make it very tart and DELICIOUS! It is not overly sweet, and it is very refreshing when served cold. It is a perfect dessert for fall.

Crust:
(Sweet Short Paste from the "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" cookbook.)

1 1/3 cup flour
2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick chilled butter (8 tablespoons)
3 tablespoons chilled vegetable shortening
5-6 tablespoons cold water

In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients until well blended and until there are no butter chunks left. On a floured surface, knead the dough into a ball.

Lightly flour top of the dough and rolling pin. Roll it into a circle 1/8 inch thick and about 3 inches larger than your flan ring.

We trimmed the dough before we put it the pan
but you could do it either way. :)

Take the bottom of a spring-form pan out. Set the ring on a baking sheet. Place the rolled-out dough over the ring and fit. Trim off excess dough by rolling the pin over the top of the ring. Push the dough 1/8 inch above the edge of the mold, to make an even, rounded rim of dough all around the inside circumference of the mold. If you would like, you may press a decorative edge around the rim of the pastry with the dull edge of a knife. With a fork, poke bottom of pastry at 1/2 inch intervals.

To keep the shell from collapsing and the bottom from puffing up, place foil inside and press in to mold it to the sides and bottom. Put a handful of dry beans in the bottom to weigh it down.

Bake at the medium level of a 400 degree oven for 8 minutes. After 8 minutes, take foil with beans out and prick bottom again with the fork. Bake for 2 more minutes. Do not remove the ring until the tart is filled and baked again. Set aside.

Apples for the top:

41 pound of any baking apple (we used granny smith)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Half, core, and peel the apples. Cut into 1/8 inch lengthwise slices and toss them into a bowl with the lemon juice and sugar. Evenly coat the apples in the lemon juice. This will keep them from browning. Set aside.

Apple-Sauce Filling:

3 pounds apples
1/3 cup apricot preserves
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons butter

Peel and dice apples. Place in a skillet and cook covered, over low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Then stir in the rest of the ingredients. Raise heat and boil, stirring, until apple-sauce is thick enough to hold in a mass in the spoon.

Finishing the Tart:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. And spread the apple-sauce in the partially cooked crust. Cover with apples in a neat, pretty design.