Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 25th Installment. The recipe is French Apple Tart.
I should have taken a picture of this unmolded, as it looked a bit prettier out of the pan. I don't have a 9" tart pan, so I gave it a try in a 9" springform pan. The edge doesn't look as pretty, but it worked - the crust held up well, and released from the pan just fine.
The pie crust part of the recipe was very good - I have found that the mix of vegetable shortening (I know some of you are saying 'ugh' right now :-) and butter makes it very flaky AND flavorful. My mother and grandmother always used only shortening, and their crusts were always excellent, but I think I like the combo crust. I've even used lard in some pie crusts recently, since we have a local source of fresh lard, and that is good too, especially in combination with butter.
I thought the roasted apple sauce topped with thin slices was interesting and tasted good. I
also liked the carmelized browning of the edges of the apple slices.
My tart was done before it got too brown - I wasn't sure whether to
leave it in, but since I didn't want the crust to burn, I pulled it out. I was wondering why I'd never seen this style of tart before (I don't remember it from the TV series either). and why French? Any one know if this is traditional in France?
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| Here's how it looked before baking |
I'm not sure I would make this again, with all those steps, but it was fun to make and the family liked it. It was feeling like a bit of a slog to get this done over the weekend (busy schedule, so had to squeeze it in between other activities), but in the end, definitely worth it.
I think using both butter and shortening is the best when making pie crust. I just can't get that wonderful flakiness without any shortening! Since I only use shortening for this kind of thing, I figure it's okay for a treat. ;) Your tart looks fantastic, even in the pan! I love the little bit of color you did get - very striking indeed!
ReplyDeleteI use only butter in my “go to” pie crust which is from Nick Malgieri…however my mom, who made the best pies ever (a little prejudice), only used Crisco! I think it’s a matter of what works for you!!
ReplyDeleteLove your beautiful tart…perfect looking!
I don't understand why people always freak out when there is shortening in a recipe.....I could understand if I ate the whole thing by myself, and then would eat all that shortening...yes, that would be bad...but really! (sorry rant) heehee
ReplyDeleteIt was a lot of work to make this, but I agree totally worth it!
Your tart looks great and nicely browned. I would make this again but would split up the steps into two days.
Lovely tart! It's a lot to do in one day, I agree, but so worth it!
ReplyDelete