Tarte Tatin

One of the host mothers in Tours offers a cooking class, so I took her up on it.  We made the magnificent Tarte Tatin.

Here's the recipe we used, though all of the conversions are a bit strange since it was given to us in kg, g ˚C, etc.

Ingredients:

• puff pastry
• ~3 lbs apples - we used 6/7 medium sized apples
• ~2 cups granulated sugar

1. Peel the apples and cut into halves (epulcher is the French word for "peel" - great word, non?)
2. Combine sugar with a little water in saucepan; heat until it becomes caramel
3. Pour melted caramel into a tart mold making sure that the bottom of the mold is covered with caramel
4. Place apples halves in the mold in concentric circles from the edge in; this can be done after the caramel has dried
5. Cover the apples with the sheet of puff pastry, tucking it in so that the tart will have sides; sprinkle (saupoudrer) the puff pastry with vanilla flavored sugar - I don't know if that exists in the U.S.
6. Cook for 25 minutes at 392˚ F 
7. Take the tart out of the oven, place a serving dish on top of the mold, then flip both over to remove your Tarte Tatin
8. Serve with creme fraiche seasoned to your liking with sugar and cinnamon

Tarte Tatin was originally a happy accident.  One of the sisters Tatin, who owned a hotel together, started making an apple pie, but left the apples in the hot butter and sugar too long.  So she put pastry on the bottom, flipped the whole thing over and faked it!

Apple love,
Maria