French Apple Tart
An irresistible afternoon treat to share.
I’m currently in Belgium and have been inspired to get my baking game on.
Apple tarts have always been a favourite of mine, so when we had family coming over for afternoon tea, I volunteered to attempt my own Nonna Lizzie recipe.
Puff pastry, pastry cream and sweet apples. This was my criteria. After researching some recipes online and doing a test run the day before, I finally had my own winning recipe!
This tart has a thin pastry cream layer in between the puff pastry and apples. It’s subtly sweet, as I use coconut milk instead of regular milk to appease my intolerance to milk. The apples are sweet, soft but slightly crispy on the outside; and the apricot glaze is the cherry on top. Serve with vanilla ice cream and enjoy with a side of coffee.
Summer treat in Belgium! Cookies are home made by Isabel my husband’s cousin ❤️
Ingredients
Puff pastry (280g roll)
4 apples
Cinnamon
1 cup sugar
1 lemon
3 egg yolks (whisked)
1 tablespoon cornflour
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup coconut milk
Vanilla essence
1/4 cup apricot jam
Butter
Method
BAKE the pastry first for 15 minutes at 180 degrees, this will make it extra crispier. Also known as ‘blind baking’. Poke holes in the bottom of the pastry so it doesn’t puff up too much in the oven. Optional to add some butter on top to help with the flakiness of the pastry.
2. CUT apples into thin semi circles. In a bowl, mix them with the sugar and cinnamon. If the apples start to brown, add some lemon juice.
STEP 2: Coating the apples in sugar. The juices of the apples with the sugar will create a syrup like texture.
3. WHISK the egg yolks, corn flour and all purpose flour in a bowl.
4. HEAT up the coconut milk on medium heat in a pan until it starts bubbling. Add a dash of vanilla essence (around 1/2 tablespoon) and continue to mix. The mixture should thicken slightly, keep mixing to make sure the bottom of the pan does not burn all the milk. This step shouldn’t take longer than 10 minutes.
5. TRANSFER the coconut milk into the egg yolk and flour mix. Whisk the ingredients together and let it cool before pouring it onto the pastry. You can place it in the fridge for 10 minutes.
STEP 3 & 4: Egg yolk & flour whisked. Coconut milk starting to bubble (as of this picture, it still needed another 5 mins to thicken up slightly).
6. POUR the pastry cream onto the puff pastry after it has been cooled down.
7. ADD apples on top of the cream starting from the outside in a circular motion going into the middle. Add pieces of butter all over the apples, this will prevent the apples from burning. Bake for 40 minutes at 180 degrees.
STEP 7: Apple assembly before adding some butter and baking.
8. PREPARE the glaze by heating up the apricot jam and 1/2 lemon juice in a pan. Mix on medium heat until it becomes more liquid. You can add more water to lemon juice to taste.
9. COAT the tart with the apricot glaze whilst it’s still warm from the oven. Serve with ice cream if desired and enjoy the family treat!
Nonna Lizzie’s French Apple Tart -a new household favourite.
