French Apple Tart

Pastry Crust

Ingredients

1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp cold water

Apple Filling

Ingredients

6 granny smith apples
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 tsp cinnamon powder
4 tbsp butter

Glaze

1/2 cup apricot jam
1 1/2 tbsp water


Methods

Pastry Crust

In a bowl add the flour and rub in the butter till combine. Add salt, egg, water and stir. Add more water if the mixture to dry. Form the mixture into a ball. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour

After an hour, lightly flour a working surface and roll out the dough into an 10 inch circle. Unroll the pastry onto a tart pan. Lightly press pastry into bottom and sides of pan. Discard excess pastry. Prick the pastry with a fork all over, cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes

Preheat oven to 400 F or 205 C and place the baking rack in a center of oven. Line the pastry with aluminium foil and fill the foil with beans or rice and bake for 20-23 minutes till pastry is lightly browned

For Filling (Apple sauce)

Peel, core and slice 3 of the apples and melt 1 tbsp butter in a pan. Add the lemon zest, 3 tbsp brown sugar and cinnamon. Add the apples and saute till the apples turns soft. Gently mash the apples with the back of spoon to get it mushy. Remove from heat and let it cool

For Top Layer

Peel core and cut the apples into slices. Melt the remaining butter in a pan and stir in the sugar and cinnamon. Add the apples and saute for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside

Spoon the apple puree into the cooled pastry crust and spread evenly. Arrange the apple slices over the apple puree, overlapping spiral pattern. Bake for 25-30 minutes in 320 F or 177 C oven till the apples are nicely browned

Glaze

Once the tart has cooled down, heat the apricot jam in a sauce pan with water and stir till no lumps. Brush the apricot glaze over the apple tart and serve warm with vanilla ice cream