Thin Apple Tart - French Apple Pie

A French classic recipe : "Tarte fine aux pommes" = Thin apple tart

The Tarte fine is made with really thin slices of fruit, 

you could make some with pear or apricot but the most famous one is the apple tart.

Being so thin makes it evenly cooked, being golden but not black 

and creates a beautiful pattern on the tart.

You can make one with a Puff dough or a Cookie dough as you prefer.

It can be flavoured with cinnamon and served with whipped cream or a vanilla ice cream.

  Preparation    Slicing the apples takes some time, making a home-made dough too. Beside that if everything is well explained, it's easy and it's really quick to bake.

  Tasting    Amazing, so thin and crusty with the dough, tender and sweet.

  To conclude    It's a classic you are sure everybody will love it. You won't take any risk doing that recipe, it's an universal one !

For a 9inch tart or 4 small individual tarts.

   You will need :   

1 puff dough 

Add 1/2 tsp of vanilla exract in it

- with the water, in the four -

5 or 6 apples

- golden, braeburn, boskop... -

Dark brown sugar, cinammon, vanilla...

For a syrup

I baked mine with a little syrup in the oven

Stir 4tbsp of powdered sugar in 6tbsp of water and 1tsp of vanilla extract

I poured the half during the cooking and the other half at the end.

- my father doesn't like cinammon, so I wanted to add some vanilla :) -

Turn the oven on at 440°F

Prepare the dough

Flatten your dough : 0.1 inch thick (2 to 3 mm)

Cut the extremity in a circular shape with a clean and smooth knife so the dough will rise well.

Using the opposite side of a knife-blade. Draw a circle on the dough at 0.7 inch (2cm) from the edges.

This will show the limit to place the apples and will make the dough rise mostly on the edges.

Set aside in the fridge.

Prepare the apples

Rinse and peel your apples, cut them in halves and remove the seeds with a spoon or a small knife.

To keep a nice shape, cut them in thin slices in the height, not in their width. 

Place them on the dough, without separating them from each other. 

Start by putting them as an outer circle, going one way (let's say clokwise) then, do an inner circle going counterclockwise. Fill your pie with those circles of apples, keeping them pretty tight but flat.

For a small pie : 2 half circle going clockwise, and counterclokwise, meeting in the center.

Use the small pieces of apple to fill the middle or the small holes.

Spread some dark brown sugar on the top and bake 30 to 40 minutes

After 15 minutes, Pour some syrup on it

If the extremity of an apple starts to darken, use a knife to flatten it.

- here, I had to flatten thatpiece of apple -

You can easily let oit bake a few more minutes to be sure your dough is well cooked

When out of the oven, spread some more sugar, cinammon and serve with syrup, 

vanilla ice cream or whipped cream !

This tart has to be eaten the day it's baked OR on the morrow, 

put it back in the oven at 300°F for 5 to 10 minutes.

- Keep cooking my child, what's next  ? -

Mushroom quiche

For 4 to 6 people (8 inch wide)

If you have a mold of 9 inch or +, put 7,4 fl oz of milk and 3,5 oz of ricotta

   Il vous faut :   

The crust

1 shortcrust dough with salted butter

1tsp of provence herbs d'herbes de provence, 

1tsp origano

peppet

To garnish

1/2 lb of fresh mushrooms (250gr) 

1/4 lb of ham (125gr)

- 4 slices -

2 eggs

2,8 oz of fresh ricotta (80gr)

6,1 fl oz of milk (18cL)

salt and pepper

1tsp provence herbs

Turn on the oven at 450°F

The dough

Make the shortcrust dough with salted butter, add the herbs with the flour

Flatten it on 1/4 inch thick

Place it in your pie pan, stab it with a fork and put in the oven for 4 minutes

Then, set aside while preparing the garniture

Ham and mushrooms

Rinse your mushrooms, cut the extremity of the feet and cut it in half, then in slice

Cut the ham in squares of 1/2 inch 

Put ham and muschrooms in a pan on medium heat with 2tsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt, stay before and mix it regularly so it takes colors.

When mushrooms are reduced and lost their water (it takes 12 minutes approximativly)

Remove it from the fire and dry them using absorbent paper and a colander if needed

Garnish

Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt, stir with the ricotta until smooth

Pour the milk, whisk it and add 1tsp of herbs,

on your pre-cooked dough, place the mushrooms ans the ham carefully 

and pour on it the egg/milk mix

- it must not go over the crust -

If you can't pour it all, don't risk to drawn your dough

- mon moule faisait 22 cm de diamètre -

Spread on it some pepper

Put in the oven for 35 minutes, turn it off and let it cool down 15 minutes 

in the oven with the door opened

Serve when still warm with a green salad, you can put fresh basil on the top :)

Quiche with leeks, proscuitto and goat cheese

Here is a quiche with leeks as I love them

For a quiche of 6 people (10inch)

If you have a 9inch pan, put only 6fl.oz of milk

   You will need :   

1 pâte brisée with salted butter, pepper and a pinch of ground nutmeg

- I also put 1 pinch of ground thym -

1 lb of leeks

7.4 fl.oz of milk

2 eggs

1 big pinch of ground nutmeg

shredded cheese

salt and pepper

optionnal :

2 slices of prosciutto, italian ham

- for a salty and crusty touch -

1.4 oz of fresh goat cheese (40gr)

-for its softness -

The leeks

Remove the exterior leaves and the dark green extremity, the hard ones.

It's kinda like sharpening a pencil, you will just have the thin and light leaves left.

Cut them in half (the long side), and then in half cylinder of 1/2inch each

Wash them carefully to remove all the dirt that may be left between the leaves, 

and use a colander to dry them off

Cook them : in a pan with some butter and salt at low heat

- they must not get any coloration, they just have to get softer -

OR in boiling water : 6 to 7 minutes in salted boiling water

OR steam-cooking

- I eat a lot of cakes, so I cook them without any butter -

Dry them with a colander and set aside on an absorbant paper

Turn the oven on at 450°F

The dough

Do your shortcrust dough, flatten it to 0,1 inch thick

Place it in your pie mold, stab it with a fork at equal distance and put it in the oven for 4 minutes

If your mold is in silicone, make a cylinder of alluminium to put as a circle 

around the edges to avoid them falling down

The filling

Beat the eggs with a hint of salt and a half teaspoon of ground nutmeg,

add the milk, whisk it and set aside

On your pre-cooked dough, spread the goat cheese in pieces,

place the leeks on it carefully, don't forget the edges

Pour little by little your milk/egg mix, it must not go over the crust, otherwise it would be flabby.

If you can't pour it all, don't risk it and stop pouring

- my mold was a little bit wider than 10inch -

Take 2 slices of prosciutto,

cut them in long bands and place them on the top of the quiche carefully,

Spread it all with shredded cheese and some pepper

Put in the oven for 35 minutes at 450°F 

Then turn it off and let it 10 more minutes

It's better to eat it warm :)

Quiche with zucchinis, goat cheese and cumin !

For a 6 people quiche

   You will need:   

3 zucchinis

- 1lb -

2.8 oz of goat cheese

6 fl oz of milk (18cL)

2 eggs

salt, pepper, cumin (caraway) and ground nutmeg

- caraway can be replaced by saffron -

4 tbsp of fresh grated parmegianno

Do a shortcrust dough and add to it 2 pinch of salt, 1tbsp of parmegiano, 

2 pinch of caraway and 1 pinch of nutmeg with the flour

Turn on the oven at 425°F

Flatten your dough, put it in your pie pan, 

sting it with a fork 4 or 5 times at equal distance from each other

Put it in the oven for 4 minutes

Let it cool down a bit outside the oven

- By doing that, you won't have a flabby dough at the end of the cooking -

Wash and peel your zucchinis to create stripes, 

cut them in thin slices and place them carefully on your pre-baked crust 

Beat the eggs with a fork with 2 pinch of salt, then add the goat cheese

and stir it to get an homogeneous cream

Add the cold milk, 2 pinch of cumin and 1 pinch of nutmeg, whisk.

Pour that sauce on your zucchinis to fill up your quiche :

be careful to not pour it under the dough, it would make the flabby crust

Spread parmegian on the top with some pepper

Put in the oven and lower down the temperature at 375°F, let it cook 35 to 40 minutes

Turn off the oven and let it 15 more minutes in it

Bon appetite :)