Rainy Day Apple Tart
Rome has been in a bit of a funk lately, weather-wise -- the past two or so weeks we have experienced not just rain but torrential downpours, not just wind but gusts strong enough to knock down trees, plus chronic cloudiness and persistent grayness. The weather has been deemed so bad that schools have been closed, as has much of our public transport a causa della caduta dei rami (or rather, too many fallen branches blocking the streets and railways) and flooding. In Venice, things are a lot worse -- as evidenced in this video of a water-filled pizzeria, kudos to the owners who are still keeping their businesses open nonetheless -- and, well, we could certainly do with a little sunshine around here.
In the midst of the bad weather-woes plaguing the country, I made a tart, this Apple Tart, which will therefore forever be known as and referred to by me as Rainy Day Apple Tart. This, for a couple of reasons; firstly, there is no better way to pass a rainstorm-ridden afternoon than baking, at least in my book (extra points given if whatever you are baking makes your kitchen smell like cinnamon and melting butter). Secondly, as happy as I am to have ended up baking this, it wasn't initially what I had in mind. On the morning of yet another non-stop rainy day in the Eternal City, I planned first to make a Sicilian Apple Cake (a dense, pine nut/apple cake) only to realize that I was fresh out of pine nuts (you can relate, I'm sure -- very common problem). My second choice cake -- a caramel apple number, requiring, however, sour cream, noticeably absent from my fridge -- was also nixed. Given my unwillingness to brave the monsoon to go out and buy either ingredient, I looked around for a recipe that would meet my apple-dessert craving, while requiring only the essentials -- flour! butter! water! apples! -- and eventually stumbled across this open-faced Apple Tart.
You could also call this a crostata, or a galette, or an open faced pie of sorts, but however you call it, the idea is this: pie dough rolled out and then folded around a heap of apples -- the less perfect, the better, just chalk it up to a "rustic" appearance -- and then baked directly on a baking sheet, no pie plate or double crust required. It is fairly low-key as far as desserts go, with the most time consuming part being the peeling/slicing of the apples, which, honestly speaking, is one of those surprisingly repetitive/calming kitchen tasks that are welcome on a relaxed rainy-afternoon. Once you've sorted your apples, gotten the whole thing in to the oven, and spent the next hour watching Netflix, you'll find you have a sublime galette/crostata/tart/pie on your hands, delicious in all its superbly autumnal splendor, a mound of cinnamon-y, caramelized, sweet-tart apples, all wrapped up in a flaky, buttery, pie crust, sprinkled with a little sugar for shine. This tart would have been best enjoyed with the classic scoop of melting vanilla ice cream, but, as I was (once again) not willing to brave the downpour in my rain boots I settled for a shower of (very photogenic) powdered sugar. The photos are a bit shadow-y and far darker than I'd like due to all the clouds outside when this was photographed (even after stretching the limits of my free photo editing program!) but hey, this isn't called Rainy Day Apple Tart for nothing. Moral of the story: sometimes very, very bad weather can lead to very, very good desserts.
Bonus: if you, like me, will be celebrating Thanksgiving on November 22 this year, this would also make an excellent dessert, veering only ever so slightly off the beaten path of traditional Apple Pie, and requiring a little less work to boot!
A couple of notes: The dough here can be made up to 3 days in advance and refrigerated. Allow it to sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes before rolling so that it is soft enough to roll. If you really want to make this in advance, the assembled tart may be frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze, place the baking sheet in the freezer until the tart is frozen, then wrap tightly. Bake directly from the freezer. I didn't have turbinado sugar on hand, so I sprinkled regular sugar over the tart and it worked fine. The recipe as written also recommends brushing the finished tart with some apricot jam that has been heated up, to make it a little shiny, but I left this out -- you do as you see fit. Although it may be tempting to use store-bought dough here (and you totally could) the homemade one is sooo much better and not that hard to make (promise!) Finally, I used a really handy apple slicer from Tiger to help me cut up the apples here -- highly recommended!
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RAINY DAY APPLE TART
Recipe from Once Upon A Chef. Serves about 8.
Ingredients for the crust:
1 1/2 cups (195 grams) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1-1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons or 168 grams) very cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4 tablespoons very cold water
Ingredients for the filling:
1-3/4 lbs (790 grams) Granny Smith apples - I used about 4
1/3 cup (about 70 grams or 5.5 tablespoons) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon (less if you don't like cinnamon)
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon salt
To finish:
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, if you have it
Directions:
Start with the crust. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. If you have a food processor, feel free to use it -- in the bowl of the food processor, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Pulse briefly to combine. Add the cold butter and process just until the butter is the size of peas, about 5 seconds. Sprinkle the ice water over the mixture and process just until moistened and very crumbly, about 5 seconds. If you like me don't have a food processor, you can do this by hand; whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar, and then cut the butter in to the dry ingredients with your fingers, until it becomes crumbly and sand-like. Stir in the water until a dough forms. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead a few times, just until it comes together into a ball. Pat the dough into a disk. Flour your work surface again and dust the dough with flour, as well. Using a rolling pin, roll into a circle 8 to 10 inches in diameter, turning and adding more flour as necessary so the dough doesn’t stick. Transfer the dough to the parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate while you prepare the filling (you’ll roll the dough out further on the parchment paper so go ahead and clean your work surface).
While your dough is chilling, start on your filling. Peel, core, and cut the apples into 1/8-inch-thick slices (you should have about 4 cups) and place in a large bowl. Add the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, melted butter, and salt and stir to combine.
Take the dough from the fridge and slide the parchment paper onto your kitchen counter. Roll the dough, directly on the parchment paper, into a 14-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick (it’s fine if the edges are a little ragged, we're going for a rustic look here!) Place the parchment and dough back on the baking sheet – the pastry should curve up the sides of the pan.
Assemble the tart: Sprinkle the flour evenly over the pastry. Arrange the apple slices on top in overlapping concentric circles to within 3 inches of the edge. Fold the edges of the dough over the apples in a free-form fashion, working your way around and creating pleats as you go.
Using a pastry brush, brush the dough evenly with the beaten egg. Sprinkle half of the turbinado sugar over the top crust and half over the fruit. Chill the assembled tart in the fridge for 15 to 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the center position. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until the apples are tender and the crust is golden and cooked through. Transfer the pan to a rack and let cool. Use two large spatulas to transfer the tart to a serving plate or cutting board. Slice and serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, if you can.
