tarte tatin

With four simple ingredients this is a delicious and somewhat easy dessert. I have to thank my belle-maman (mother in law) for teaching me her recipe in her authentic, French kitchen.

4 medium sized apples pealed and sliced. (I used Royal Gala or Golden Delicious)
1 pate brisee (butter pie pastry)
300 grams of sugar to an equal part of water

To make the caramel sauce put a saucepan on medium high heat and add the sugar and water. It will boil and bubble and change into caramel after about 20-30 minutes. You should pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius or about 400 degrees Fahrenheit in the middle of preparing the caramel. You can smell and see when your sugar-water changes. Let it cook until it reaches a great caramel color. But, don't let it burn! If it gets too dark or smells like it is burning remove it from the stove immediately! Never touch caramel. It is extremely HOT!

Place your pealed and sliced apples in the bottom of your baking dish. A 9 inch pie dish should work well. I start on the outside and layer the apples and work my way in to the middle.

Pour the prepared caramel over the apples.

Unroll your pastry crust and lay it over the top of the caramel and apples. Fold in the edges to make a nice crust. You can cut a few holes at the top for ventilation.

Place the tart in the oven. Keep an eye on it as it cooks. In the first 15 minutes the crust will become golden and the caramel will start to bubble out of the sides.

You can lower the temperature by 50 degrees Fahrenheit and let it cook another 15-20 minutes.

Let your tart cool for about 20-30 minutes. Find a dish that is large enough to hold your tart. Place it over the pie dish as you will turn the entire thing over! The crust will be on the bottom, apples for all to see and a delicious caramel sauce all over everything.

Bon appetit et Merci Belle Maman!