Filling

  • 5-6 Apples, very crisp
  • Cinnamon
  • Sugar

Sauce

  • ½ cup Crème Fraiche (or just Heavy Cream)
  • ¼ cup Milk
  • 1 Egg
  • 2 heaping Tablespoons of Sugar
  • ½ Tablespoon Vanilla
  • Cinnamon

Use my Homemade Tart Crust Recipe. Butter and flour the pie pan (highly recommend using a glass pan). Roll out dough and place in pie pan and return to refrigerator. Peel and thinly slice apples (thinner the better – I recommend using a mandolin slicer). Stand slices on end in pie. Whisk sauce ingredients in a bowl and drizzle on apples. Add cinnamon and sugar according to taste (you can be very liberal in your application). Bake at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until the crust pulls away from the bottom of the pan (you need a glass pan in order to see that).
French Apple Tart

 

Detailed Instructions

Crust Preparation

Apple Preparation

This works best with two people (one cutting, one placing). I prefer a Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, or Gala (the French use Gala). You need to peel them and then slice them as thin as possible.  If your apples are thick, they won’t cook all the way through and cooking time will take longer (which will burn your crust). I stagger some apples in my fingers and then place them in the pan.

French Apple TartFrench Apple TartFrench Apple Tart

I would work my way around the sides and then add apples into the middle.  You will think you are done when you have finished 4 apples. But then you need to start stuffing slices in all the empty spaces. Once you’ve done that, you should then start breaking slices in halves and fourths and filling yet more spaces.  You know when you are done when you can’t find any more spaces and all the slices are firmly standing up. In fact, you should be able to lightly press down on the slices and they shouldn’t move.

French Apple Tart

French Apple Tart

Then liberally dust the apples with cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg (optional).  If your apples have a bite to them (slightly sour) then you will want to add more sugar and cinnamon to it.

Mix the sauce and then drizzle it on top and you are ready.

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