Tarte Tatin
Upside-down caramelized apple tart, tender apples glazed with amber caramel under golden pastry, inverted while hot at serving.
Upside-down caramelized apple tart, tender apples glazed with amber caramel under golden pastry, inverted while hot at serving.
A failed dish that becomes a triumph: admit that it resembles me, and that it resembles the theater. You caramelize the apples in butter until they take on that autumn color, top it all with pastry, and it's in flipping the mold, that slightly anxious gesture, that you hold your success or disaster. At home we served it blazing hot, the caramel still trembling, on evenings when the audience had applauded. A spoonful of thick cream on top, and you forgot even the critics.
- •Reinette apples — about ten (tender filling)
- •Butter — a good lump (caramel)
- •Sugar — a large glass (caramel)
- •Shortcrust pastry — one sheet (inverted base)
Tarte Tatin
Upside-down caramelized apple tart, tender apples glazed with amber caramel under golden pastry, inverted while hot at serving.
Why this dish? The dessert for opening nights: when a play was a hit, we celebrated at table, and the upside-down Tatin—an accident turned masterpiece—was sure to please a man who reinvented ancient tragedies by turning them on their head.
A failed dish that becomes a triumph: admit that it resembles me, and that it resembles the theater. You caramelize the apples in butter until they take on that autumn color, top it all with pastry, and it's in flipping the mold, that slightly anxious gesture, that you hold your success or disaster. At home we served it blazing hot, the caramel still trembling, on evenings when the audience had applauded. A spoonful of thick cream on top, and you forgot even the critics.
Ingredients (period version)
- Reinette apples — about ten (tender filling)
- Butter — a good lump (caramel)
- Sugar — a large glass (caramel)
- Shortcrust pastry — one sheet (inverted base)
Ingredients
- Reinette or Golden apples — 1.2 kg (8 to 10) (tender filling)
- Demi-sel butter — 80 g (caramel)
- Sugar — 150 g (caramel)
- Shortcrust pastry — 1 roll (250 g) (inverted base)
- Thick crème fraîche — for serving (accompaniment)
Method
- Peel the apples and cut into thick wedges.
- Make an amber caramel with sugar and butter directly in an ovenproof skillet.
- Arrange the apple wedges tightly over the caramel, rounded side down, and cook over low heat for 15 minutes.
- Cover with pastry, tucking the edges inside, prick, and bake at 200°C for 30 minutes.
- Let cool for 5 minutes, then invert firmly onto a plate. Serve warm with cream.
How it was made : The tart is said to have been created in the late 19th century at the hotel of the Tatin sisters in Lamotte-Beuvron, Sologne, from forgotten apples that were salvaged by laying pastry on top and flipping the whole thing. It became a Parisian classic between the wars.
The contemporary twist : Served individually in small molds, flambéed with a dash of calvados at serving.
Sources : Curnonsky, La France gastronomique — Berry/Sologne · Larousse gastronomique, entry 'Tatin'
Jean Anouilh · Charactorium