RICHMOND, Va - Executive Chef and Restauranteur Scott Hoyland walked us through the recipe for Tarte Tatin - a delicious apple pie dessert. Chef Hoyland owns Blue Talon and Culture Café. You can find out more here: www.culturecafeva.com
Culture Cafe TARTE TATIN © (serves 8)
Ingredients 6-8 ea.
Granny Smith Apples
6 Tbsp Salted Butter, soft
2/3 cup Light Brown Sugar
1 ea Sheet of Puff Pastry
The Day Before: slice the bottom off the apple so it has a flat bottom. Peel and quarter all but one of the apples, cutting away any seeds or bits of core that remain. Put the apples in a bowl and a lightly cover them. Refrigerate for up to three days, allowing the apples to lose moisture, making for less liquid in the tart.
Preheat oven to 375o F. Coat the bottom of a heavy duty, ovenproof 10” skillet with a generous amount of butter. Sprinkle sugar evenly over the butter.
Cut a 1.5” round slice from one of the apples and place in the center of the pan. Arrange the remaining apple quarters, standing them on their flat ends, in concentric circles around the center disc - be sure to keep them close together so that they will support each other. They should end up looking like the petals of a flower.
Using a pan or bowl slightly larger than the size of your skillet, cut out a circle with a sharp knife. Lift the circle of dough and lay it gently over the apples. Use your fingers to tuck the pastry snugly around the apples, helping to hold them together. Place the skillet on the stove and cook over medium heat until you can see golden brown juice bubbling around the edges, approximately 3-4 minutes. (Spoon off extra apple juice if needed until the golden brown color is reached.) Continue cooking the pan until the juices turn darker brown - no more than 10 minutes total.
Place the skillet on the center rack of the oven and bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown and firm. Let cool for 5 minutes - then carefully turn out onto a round serving platter. (If any apple pieces remain stuck to the pan, gently remove them with a spatula and arrange them back on the pastry shell.) *Puff pastry dough can be purchased at most markets or you can use your favorite recipe.
