Fine Apple Tart

It was my mum’s birthday on Monday, and as we celebrated at my apartment this year, I had the honorary responsibility of doing all the cooking.

And along with that came the task of making her birthday dessert!

I say dessert, not cake, because Mum isn’t really into cake. Apples, however, she loves. Anything baked with apples is her thing.

I’ve made her these gorgeous little apple pies in the past, as well as this traditional apple pie (her favourite, I think!). I’ve baked her caramel apple galettes and even these apple turnovers, because when we were in Paris they were all she ate. Quite literally.

So when this birthday rolled around and she requested the usual apple-something, I had to really get thinking to bake her something new. And delicious.

A few months ago, when Mr Man and I were in Sydney, I had this amazing, delicious, crispy, gorgeous, fine apple tart from a beautiful little bakery called Flour and Stone.

It was so good that the memory of it had stayed with me, and I thought this was the perfect occasion to attempt to recreate it.

And the recreation was a complete success! The tart pastry was crispy and golden and puffed, and the apples were sweet and tart and juicy and the whole thing had caramelised and melded together beautifully.

I watched this video from Flour and Stone to learn how to make the tart just like thy do.

I used puff pastry from work, but you could use a great quality all-butter puff. Please make sure it is all-butter though! No vegan pastry fat here.

Then I covered it in a thin layer of creamy almond frangipane. Flour and Stone use pastry cream, but I had some leftover frangipane in the fridge and it worked beautifully with the apples.

Then all that gets covered with lots and lots of finely sliced apples. It takes time! Peel, core, slice arrange. Peel, core, slice, arrange. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Then finally, you brush on a lot of melted butter, then sprinkle on even more sugar, like everywhere, and then we bake!

• 1 sheet ready-rolled all-butter puff pastry
• A few tablespoons of pastry cream (link below recipe) or frangipane
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 6 - 8 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and halved
• Melted butter, about ¼ cup
• Caster (superfine) sugar, for sprinkling, about ½ cup

1. Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F) and line a tray with baking paper.
2. Place a dinner plate upside down on the puff pastry and score around the outside to get a circle of puff. Place this on the baking tray.
3. Spread a thin layer of pastry cream or frangipane over the puff pastry, leaving a 1cm (1/2 inch) border around the edge. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
4. Thinly slice the apples and arrange them standing up, starting on the outside edge of the puff pastry and working your way in. Follow the video (link below recipe) to see an example.
5. Brush all over with melted butter and sprinkle generously with sugar.
6. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes, until golden brown puffed.
7. Eat while it's fresh! Serves 8!
8. Happy baking!

Recipe inspired by Flour and Stone.