Ladies And Gentlemen
I give you Caramel Apple Tarts (click image for full-size):
Here’s the recipe. If you’re not pastry adept, tarts are a good option. They use a short crumb dough, more like cookie dough than crust (just try not to eat it all as you’re working with it), and you can handle it as much as you like. Just divide it into fourths, press it into a ball and flatten it (think play-doh), then put it in the bottom of the tart ring and use your thumbs to press it into the bottom and up the sides. Pinch off any excess along the rim, and that’s it. One thing, though: Grease the ring thoroughly first, then drop the bottom in and grease it, or caramel-y goo could seep in between and make the tart difficult to unmold.
4 4-inch tart rings
1-2-3 dough:
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. butter (room temperature)
1 1/2 c. flour
1 egg
Caramel sauce:
3/4 c. sugar
4 T. unsalted butter
1/4 c. heavy cream, at almost boiling point
Tarts:
3 tart apples
2 T. butter
Streusel:
1 T. brown sugar
1 T. flour
1 T. butter (room temperature)
1 t. cinnamon
1 T. rolled oats
Preheat the oven to 350.
Make the dough. Combine the flour and sugar, then mix in the butter and egg, just until it holds together. Form into a ball, wrap tightly in Saran wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Press (do not roll) the dough into buttered tart shells. Prick all over with a fork, and bake for fifteen minutes. If the bottom puffs up, prick again as soon as you remove them from the oven to release the air.
Peel, core, and thinly slice (or chop) the apples. Sautee them in the butter over low heat, stirring frequently, until soft.
Make the caramel sauce. IN A LARGE, HEAVY PAN, place the sugar and turn the heat on medium. Stir the sugar, and it will start to melt. When this happens, turn the heat down to low, and stirring constantly, cook until the sugar is all melted, smooth, and an amber color. Add the butter and mix it in. Now, be careful here. VERY SLOWLY add the near boiling cream, stirring it in, until it is all incorporated — it will bubble, so stand back. Remove the caramel sauce from the heat and let it cool for thirty minutes or so. RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO STICK YOUR FINGER IN AND TASTE IT!
Mix the dry streusel ingredients, then blend in the butter, until the mixture is crumbly.
Mix the apples with the caramel sauce and pile into the tart shells.
Sprinkle the streusel over the tops, and bake until the streusel is brown and the tarts are bubbly, about fifteen minutes.
Let cool on a rack for about 30 minutes, then unmold (there is no reason to remove the bottoms unless you’re going to sell them). To unmold, grab the ring in one hand, and with the fingers of the other, gently push upward on the bottom and push the tart up out of the ring.