Open Face Apple Tart Recipes

FRENCH APPLE TART

Steps:

• For the pastry, place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse for a few seconds to combine. Add the butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the butter is in small bits the size of peas. With the motor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse just until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Roll the dough slightly larger than 10 by 14-inches. Using a ruler and a small knife, trim the edges. Place the dough on the prepared sheet pan and refrigerate while you prepare the apples.
• Peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem. Remove the stems and cores with a sharp knife and a melon baller. Slice the apples crosswise in 1/4-inch thick slices. Place overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices. (I tend not to use the apple ends in order to make the arrangement beautiful.) Sprinkle with the full 1/2 cup of sugar and dot with the butter.
• Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown. Rotate the pan once during cooking. If the pastry puffs up in one area, cut a little slit with a knife to let the air out. Don't worry! The apple juices will burn in the pan but the tart will be fine! When the tart's done, heat the apricot jelly together with the Calvados and brush the apples and the pastry completely with the jelly mixture. Loosen the tart with a metal spatula so it doesn't stick to the paper. Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.

OPEN-FACED RUSTIC APPLE TART

Steps:

• To make the crust: Combine 2 cups of the flour with the salt and confectioners' sugar in the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to blend. Add the butter, and pulse about 20 times, or until the butter is the size of small peas. Add the egg, pulse to blend, and add enough of the water (a little at a time, pulsing between each addition) for the crust to stay together when you squeeze a handful of dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. To make the filling: Mix the apple slices with the lemon juice, and set aside. Mix the remaining 1/4 cup flour with the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add half of the flour-sugar mixture to the apples, and stir gently to combine ingredients. Roll the dough out into a large 1/4-inch-thick round. Sprinkle the remaining half of the flour-sugar mixture over all except the outside 2 inches of the dough. Place the apple slices over the flour-sugar mixture in concentric circles, overlapping the slices and leaving about 2 inches of empty crust around the edge of the apples. Using your hands, fold the edge of the crust over the apples, overlapping the folds slightly and pressing the crust together with your hands where the crust overlaps. Place the remaining tablespoon of butter cubes over the top of the uncovered apples. Bake the tart for 35 to 45 minutes, until crust and apples are light golden brown and the apples are somewhat tender. Before serving, dust the tart with confectioners' sugar.

OPEN FACE APPLE TART

Steps:

• Roll pastry out and fit into flan pan.
• Peel and core apples, cut into slices about 1/4\" thick, you should have about 6 cups.
• Toss with lemon juice and sugar.
• Arrange apple slices; slightly overlapping in circles on pastry; make 2 or 3 layers.
• Scatter raisins over top if desired.
• Drizzle with melted butter.
• Place on bottom rack of 400 oven and bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown.
• If apples start too brown too much, cover loosely with foil.
• In small, saucepan, heat apricot jam until melted, spoon evenly over apples.
• Bake for about 5 minutes longer or until apples are glazed.
• Let cool to room temperature.
• Serve with whipped cream if desired.

OPEN-FACED DESIGNER APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Make the dough.Remove one piece of dough from the refrigerator. If necessary, allow it to sit for about 10 minutes, until it is soft enough to roll.
• On a floured pastry cloth or between two sheets of lightly floured plastic wrap, roll the pastry 1/8 inch thick or less and large enough to cut a 12-inch circle. Use an expandable flan ring or a cardboard template and a sharp knife as a guide to cut out the circle. Transfer it to the pie plate. Trim the edge if necessary so that it extends 1/4 inch past the edge of the pie plate. Cover the pastry lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for a minimum of 1 hour and a maximum of 24 hours.
• Roll out the second piece of dough 1/8 inch thick and cut about twenty-six 2 1/2 inch leaves, using a cutter or a small sharp knife. Use a small sharp knife to make veins. Cover and refrigerate.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F at least 20 minutes before baking.
• Line the pastry with parchment, pleating it as necessary so it fits into the pan, and fill it with dried beans or peas. Bake for 20 minutes. Carefully lift out the beans with the parchment. With a fork, prick the bottom and sides and bake 5 to 10 minutes more or until the crust is pale golden. Check after 3 minutes and prick any bubbles that may have formed.
• Cool the crust on a rack for 3 minutes, so it is no longer piping hot, then brush the bottom and sides with the egg white.
• In a large bowl, combine the apples, lemon juice, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and toss to mix. Allow the apples to macerate for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 3 hours at room temperature.
• Transfer the apples and their juices to a colander suspended over a bowl to capture the liquid. The mixture will release at least 1/2 cup of liquid.
• In a small saucepan (preferably lined with a nonstick surface), over medium-high heat, boil down this liquid, with the butter, to 1/3 cup (a little more if more than 1/2 cup of liquid), or until syrupy and lightly caramelized. Swirl the liquid but do not stir it. (Alternatively, spray a 4-cup heatproof measure with nonstick vegetable spray, add the liquid and butter, and boil it in the microwave, about 7 minutes on high.) Meanwhile, transfer the apples to a bowl and toss them with the cornstarch until all traces of it have disappeared.
• Pour the hot syrup over the apples, tossing gently. (If the liquid hardens on contact with the apples, allow them to sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes or until the moisture from the apples dissolves it.) Arrange the apples, overlapping the slices in concentric circles in the pie shell, starting from the outside edge. Keep adding more apples, using the tip of a knife to help insert them in between the other slices, until you have used all the slices. Pour any remaining apple juices evenly over the apples.
• Brush the baked pie crust rim with the egg. Brush the bottom of each leaf with egg and place the leaves on the border, tilting them and overlapping them slightly. Brush the top of the leaves with egg. Cover the pie loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30 minutes before baking to chill the pastry. This will maintain flakiness.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating. Place a large piece of greased foil on top to catch any juices.
• Set the pie directly on the foil-topped baking stone and bake for 15 minutes. Cut a round of foil to fit over the apples and the edge of the crust and crimp it in 3 or 4 places to create a dome. Cover the pie with the foil and cut 3 steam vents in the foil, about 3 inches long. Continue baking for 45 to 50 minutes or until the juices bubble and the apples feel tender but not mushy when pierced with a cake tester or a small sharp knife. Remove the foil and bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until the top of the apples is golden brown. Remove the pie to a rack.
• In a small saucepan or microwave oven, heat the apricot preserves until melted and bubbling. Strain them into a small cup. Brush them over the top of the apples. Serve warm or at room temperature.
• Store: Room temperature, up to 2 days.