I am not very keen on handling pastries as there is too much worries in me - make sure butter is cold, make sure I work on the dough as quickly as possible, do not over-knead the dough, use ice water, put the dough back in the fridge, roll the dough quickly... oh, and the worries go on and on.
The more I read about instructions and precautions, the more I apprehensive I became. But look at those beautiful tarts out there, at the bakeries, and on the glossy pages.
I have to overcome this, I told myself. I cannot rely on store-bought pastry all the time. So, I googled with the key word "simplest tart" and found Smitten Kitchen's Simplest Apple Tart. Are you kidding me? There is such a thing as simplest tart afterall!
Verdict: The pastry is pretty easy to make and it turns out great with a light crumbly texture. This is a good basic tart recipe and you can substitute the apples with any fruits you like.
Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Ideas: can make into tart or galette style
Ingredients
Dough:
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
6 Tbsp (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, just softened, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
3 1/2 Tbsp chilled water
Filling:
2 pounds apples (Golden Delicious or another tart, firm variety), peeled, cored (save peels and cores), and sliced
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
5 Tbsp sugar (I reduced to 3 Tbsp or less)
Glaze:
1/2 cup sugar
1) Mix flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl; add 2 Tbsp of the butter. Blend in a mixer until dough resembles coarse cornmeal. Add remaining butter; mix until biggest pieces look like large peas.
2) Dribble in water, stir, then dribble in more, until dough just holds together. Toss with hands, letting it fall through fingers, until it's ropy with some dry patches. If dry patches predominate, add another tablespoon water. Keep tossing until you can roll dough into a ball. Flatten into a 4-inch thick disk; refrigerate. After at least 30 minutes, remove; let soften so it's malleable but still cold. Smooth cracks at edges. On a lightly floured surface, roll into a 14-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Dust excess flour from both sides with a dry pastry brush.
3) Place dough in a lightly greased 9-inch round tart pan, or simply on a parchment-lined baking sheet if you wish to go free-form, or galette-style with it. Heat oven to 400F (200C). (If you have a pizza stone, place it in the center of the rack.)
4) Overlap apples on dough in a ring 2 inches from edge if going galette style, or up to the sides if using the tart pan. Continue inward until you reach the center. Fold any dough hanging over pan back onto itself; crimp edges at 1-inch intervals.
5) Brush melted butter over apples and onto dough edge. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over dough edge and the other 3 tablespoons over apples. (I used a total of 3 tablespoons only.)
6) Bake in center of oven until apples are soft, with browned edges, and crust has caramelized to a dark golden brown (about 45 minutes), making sure to rotate tart every 15 minutes.
7) Make glaze: Put reserved peels and cores in a large saucepan, along with sugar. Pour in just enough water to cover; simmer for 25 minutes. Strain syrup through cheesecloth.
8) Remove tart from oven, and slide off parchment onto cooling rack. Let cool at least 15 minutes.
9) Brush glaze over tart, slice, and serve.
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