Tarte Tatin

from Cuisine.tv

adapted by Judy O'Shea

serves 8

5 firm apples, peeled, halved and cored

12 tablespoons soft unsalted butter

1 vanilla pod

1 cup sugar

1 recipe of home-made pie pastry for IO-inch pie

The day before serving: In a 10 inch, well-buttered, deep-dish pie plate, either Pyrex or metal, preferably with straight sides, wedge the apple halves on end "glueing" them together with the softened butter. You can add or subtract an apple half to get it good and wedged; make sure you use ALL the butter. Cut the vanilla pod in two and scrape out the seeds, mix with the sugar and pour over the butter and apples. Put the pie plate on the lowest heat possible ON THE STOVE TOP. Leave it undisturbed for an hour or more, depending on the size and texture of the apples. Test with a fork to be sure they are tender and the butter and sugar melted and lightly caramelized. When the apples have cooled, refrigerate until the next day or until the caramel is firm.

The day of serving: Prepare the pastry, but don't assemble until just before serving. Using the dimensions of the pie plate, cut a circle of pastry and bake at 375 degrees until lightly browned.

Just before serving: Put the pie plate with the apples on the stove top at moderate heat for 5 to 10 minutes until the sugar is well caramelized. WATCH this closely, burning is easy! Place the tart pastry on top of the pie, the pie plate on a large dish towel, a serving dish on top and using the edges of the towel to hold the whole business together, invert the tart.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or Chantilly cream (1 cup of heavy cream, 2 teaspoons powdered sugar and 112 teaspoon vanilla whipped into peaks).

This is the famous French Tarte Tatin. It's very simple, can be done ahead and assembled at the last minute. Sounds complicated, but not at all. DON'T change this recipe. It sounds weird, but it works. Most Tarte Tatin recipes are tough since the sugar burns before it caramelizes. Because the apples are almost whole, the sugar melts slowly so this tart doesn't burn.