Tarte aux Pommes ~ 鄉村風味的蘋果餡餅

I guess friends got wind that I am free up now because I got quite a few invitations to parties, dinners and etc.! As this being said, this is the reason why I haven’t spent much time in the kitchen lately. Plus I was crazy busy earlier with the 2 weddings that I was working on and whenever I have a lot on my plate, I tend to sort of withdrawn from the social scene. It feels great to be hanging with everyone now. I apologize if I neglected anyone, you know I love ya’ll…hug and kisses…mua…^0^

Enough of the mushy stuff and back to food; my neighbor gave us some apples that they harvest from their yard and there were lots so I decided to use some to make dessert. I first read about this apple tart recipe in the Everyday Food magazine (Martha Stewart). It calls for things that are kitchen staples and requires little time to make so I bookmarked it, thinking that I will bake this for brunch someday ^0^


This recipe called for store-bought puff pastry, which I am glad because I don’t have the patience or the talent for the roll-fold-rest process that could easily take up half a day! You can buy ready-to-bake puff pastry from any specialty supermarkets. I bought mine from Trader Joe’s (man, I heart this store!) but I seen it at Bistro Farm and Whole Food as well. The one from TJ’s came with 2 pieces so I saved the 2nd for later. The apple variety that I used was Granny Smith, which is slightly tarter than the other varieties, which I love since I don’t like things to be overly sweet, but you can substitute with any other varieties. You may also substitute with other fruits such as pears and figs.

I love how the tart tastes just with the right amount of sweetness and so good when it is just out of the oven. I love that buttery, flaky, and melt-in-your-mouth texture. I cut it into bite sizes and served with a tiny ball of mocha chip ice cream and a cup of rose hip herbal tea for brunch. Yummy!


Apple Tart
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
2 Granny Smith apples
1/3 cup sugar
2tbs unsalted butter
2tbs apricot jam

For egg wash:
1 (L size) egg yolk
1tsp water
Some flour, for work surface

Prep:
Preheat the oven to 375 degree F/190 degree C.
Take the pastry sheet out the freezer 10 minutes before.

On a slightly floured work surface; roll out a pastry sheet to a perfectly shaped square. Trim the edges then divide the sheet into 2 equal parts (2 rectangles), then place in the freezer.

Peel, core, and slice the apples. In a large bowl, toss the apples with the sugar. Stir slightly to ensure that all apples are coated. Beat the egg yolk with the water to make the egg wash. Set aside.

Take the pastry sheets out the freezer and transfer them to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Using a knife, score but not cut all the way through a ¾ inch boarder around the pastry sheets, then brush with egg wash but avoid the boarders.

Place the apples inside of the boarders on pastry sheets, then dot with melted butter. Place in oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes until golden. However, oven temperature varies slightly across all brands so I baked for 40 minutes in order to get that golden look so the time just an estimate. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for 5 minutes.

Make glaze. Heat 2 tablespoons apricot jam with 1 tablespoon water until melted using the microwave. Brush the tarts with the glaze. Serve warm by itself or with Chantilly crème or ice cream. Enjoy!


前些時候真的忙翻了。現在終於可以呼一口氣了，也可以恢復社交生活了^0^ 朋友們好像也知道我有閑了，邀約像雪片飛來﹗我有一個毛病就是忙起來就會六親不認﹗朋友們常會抗議說我忽視他們，但是我也不想呀﹗ 對不起嘛﹗基於我不想他們boycott我，我儘量都赴約去安撫一下。我真的怕他們不理我 :’( (你們應該知道我很愛你們的﹗) 這也是為甚麼我最近很少進廚房的原因了…哎喲，時間真的不夠用﹗

回歸主題。前幾天鄰居的蘋果樹有收成就送了滿滿的一籃蘋果給我們家。我看也吃不完就拿了一些來做點心。我記起之前有在Everyday Food雜誌看過蘋果餡餅食譜，覺得材料精簡做法簡單，所以bookmark了就等哪天brunch做來吃…呵呵 …


應該看的出來我多挑不需烤的甜點來做的吧? 我其實對baking有抗拒，因為要量這量那的! 我很開心這個食譜用的是現成的千層粉糰，因為我沒耐心及能耐做這個高難度的粉糰因為繁複的製造方法最少需要半天以上的時間﹗Ready-made的千層酥我是在Trader Joe’s 買的。但是Bistro Farm，Whole Food等超市也有賣。鄰居送的蘋果種類是Granny Smith，比起其它蘋果種類是比較酸的。我不喜歡吃過甜的東西，所以我很喜歡這味道﹗但你不要局限於Granny Smith蘋果﹗可用其它的蘋果種類代替。我想用無花果或洋梨做餡料也不錯噢^0^﹗

剛烤好的蘋果餡餅既酥又香。薄如餅乾般香鬆輕脆之口感的油酥餅皮﹐厚厚的的糖煮蘋果餡﹐如此簡單卻吃的我好開心滿足。這樣又過了一個懶散的下午^u^

蘋果餡餅
1塊 現成的千層粉糰
兩個 Granny Smith蘋果
1/3杯 砂糖
2湯匙 無鹽奶油 (牛油)
2湯匙 杏桃果醬

蛋汁
1個 (L尺寸) 蛋黃
1茶匙 水

麵粉適量﹐桿麵皮用

事前準備:
-預熱烤箱到375 degree F/190 degree C。
-將千層粉糰從冰箱當中取出解凍備用，約十分鐘。


桿麵台撒上麵粉，用桿麵棒將麵糰桿成一個正方形。將邊緣突出的麵皮用刀子切掉，再將它切成兩個同等份的長方形，放進冰箱冷藏備用。

將削皮去核切薄片的蘋果和砂糖一起放大碗中，輕輕攪拌，讓砂糖覆蓋蘋果，備用。把蛋黃和水一起拌勻做成蛋汁，備用。

將麵皮從冰箱當中取出，放到鋪了牛油紙的烤盤上。用刀子輕輕的在麵皮邊緣劃界線，小心不要切斷麵皮。用蛋汁塗抹界線裡的麵皮，界處不塗抹蛋汁。將蘋果鋪在界線裡的麵皮上，刷上融化的奶油，放進烤箱烘烤約30-35分鐘至金黃色。記住烘烤時間只是參考而以﹗我烤了約40分鐘才烤至金黃色。

最後是製造裝飾用的杏桃果醬。杏桃果醬和水放在小碗裡後用microwave加熱直到變成流動狀的液態，稍微放涼。用刷子在蘋果餡餅表面與餅皮上塗上滿滿的杏桃果醬，待涼。將餡餅切成一口份量﹐加一球冰淇淋，再來一杯花果茶就是最好的下午茶選擇。