TARTE AUX POMMES - MOROCCAN

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 400° F
• 2. Spread the pastry cream across the bottom of the chilled, unbaked sweet pastry shell.
• 3. Mix the apple slices with the sugar and cinnamon. Arrange the slices in an overlapping pattern over the pastry cream. Dot the apples with tiny bits of butter.
• 4. Wrap strips of aluminum foil around the edges of the tart pan to protect the crust from burning. Bake the tart in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes. Remove the foil, and continue baking for another 10 minutes, or until the apples and crust are nicely colored. Remove the tart to a rack to cool.
• 5. While the tart is still warm, heat the apricot jam with the lemon juice until boiling. Use a pastry brush to apply the apricot glaze over the apples.
• 6. Refrigerate the tart when it has cooled completely. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
• 7. Pâté Sucrée Recipe - French Sweet Pastry Crust Prep Time: 15 minutes Chilling time: 2 hours Total Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes Yield: 2 tart crusts Ingredients: 3 cups (340 g) flour 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup (220 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits 2 egg yolks ice water
• 8. Pâté Sucrée Recipe - French Sweet Pastry Crust (continued) Blend the flour, sugar and salt. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry cutter or fork until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with bits of butter no larger than peas. (Alternatively, you can process the mixture on pulse mode in a food processor.) Add the egg yolks, and continue blending with the pastry cutter (or on pulse mode in the processor) until the eggs are evenly incorporated and the mixture resembles a fine meal. Stir in the ice water with a fork, one tablespoons at a time, until the mixture is just moistened enough to gather and mold into a smooth ball. (Or, with the food processor running, add the water one tablespoon at a time just until the mixture forms a dough.) Divide the dough in half and flatten each portion into a smooth disc. Wrap with plastic, and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or overnight if you prefer. The dough may also be frozen for up to two months. Remove the chilled dough from the fridge, and allow to rest at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough. Lift and turn the dough as you work, keeping the work surface dusted with flour to prevent sticking. Fit the dough into a tart pan and press it firmly against the sides and bottom without stretching it. Trim off any excess dough and then cover and chill the dough in the pan for at least 30 minutes before filling and baking. To prebake the empty tart shell, prick the dough all over with a fork, cover lightly with foil and bake at 375° F (190° C) for 15 minutes. Remove the foil, and continue baking until barely colored for a partially baked shell, or golden brown for a fully baked shell.
• 9. Creme Patissiere (Pastry Cream) Recipe Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes Ingredients: 2 cups milk 5 egg yolks 6 to 8 tablespoons sugar 3 tablespoons flour 3 tablespoons corn starch 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring) Preparation: In a medium-sized saucepan, heat the milk with the vanilla bean almost to boiling. While the milk is heating, mix the egg yolks and sugar together in a large bowl, then whisk in the flour and cornstarch until the mixture is smooth. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk, and gradually whisk the hot milk into the egg mixture. Strain the mixture back into the saucepan, and place over medium heat, stirring or whisking constantly until the mixture thickens and reaches a boil. Continue cooking for half a minute longer, stirring hard and constantly to keep the pastry cream smooth. Remove the pastry cream from the heat. (Stir in the vanilla flavoring at this point if you did not use a vanilla bean). Place a layer of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pastry cream to avoid a skin forming, and leave to cool. The pastry cream can be used when cool, or covered and refrigerated for up to several days until needed. Stir chilled pastry cream before using.