French Apple Tart

My niece Liz brought this apple tart to our last family gathering. It was an incredible hit. Not only is the tart beautiful and delicious but Liz insists that it is not at all difficult to prepare. Since the dough is not in a tart pan but rolled freehand, the tart has an appealingly rustic appearance. If you are one of those pastry dough phobics (as I am), this recipe would be a good one to start with. Thanks to Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics cookbook for this one.

Pastry:

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tbl. sugar

12 tbl (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

1/2 cup ice water

Apples:

4 Granny Smith apples

1/2 cup sugar

4 tbl (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, small diced

1/2 cup apricot jelly or warm sieved apricot jam

2 tbl. Calvados, rum or water

For the pastry, place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse for a few seconds to combine. ad 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. 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 the 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. 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 the 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.

Serves 6

Notes: If the dough is a bit ragged, don't worry about.

The instructions re the apples sound more complicated than the reality. I'll try to get a photo to show you how to layer the apples or find the recipe on Foodchannel.com and see the photo. Or just do your own thing. The taste will still be wonderful.

This recipe got rave reviews on the foodchannel website. One reviewer cheated by buying prepared puff pastry and using that instead of making her own pastry. Whatever works is fine.