Apple Creme Brûlée Tart a French Dessert for the Soul
Recently, I posted a picture of an Apple Creme Brûlée tart, or what essentially could be called the love child of a creme brulee and an apple tart. The response was so overwhelming that I thought about publishing the recipe in a new book: “How To Get Fat(ter) During a Quarantine: 75 Delicious Recipes to Stress Eat To.” Perhaps a little dark gallows humour that I hope offends no one. Humour and eating are my coping mechanisms for all the stress of losing a job and the world crumbling around me.
Looking for comfort in food and with time on my hands, I experimented with combining the irresistible flavours of a warm apple tart with a classic French crème brûlée. The result? A hands-down success, especially when paired with a late harvest Gewurztraminer (2013) from Husch Vineyards.
Apple Creme Brûlée Tart
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 12 oz all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 8 oz unsalted butter cut in small pieces
- 1/2 cup cold water or slightly less or a tad more
For the Apples:
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 6 Granny Smith apples peeled, cored & cut in 1/8ths
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 orange for the grated zest
- 1/2 tsp whole cloves
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 3/4 cup heavy cream (35%)
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
To Make the Dough:
- To make the dough, pulse the flour, salt, and baking powder in a food processor.
- Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.
- With the motor running, add just enough ice-cold water so that the dough forms into a loose ball.
- Gather the dough into a ball and cover it with plastic wrap. Let it rest for one (1) hour or overnight in the refrigerator.
- On a floured work surface with a floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to a 12-inch circle.
- Use your rolling pin to roll up the dough and unroll over the tart pan.
- Press dough into the corners and pinch tightly on the edges. Do not worry if the edges look ragged. It is important to pinch tight because this will keep the dough from shrinking.
- Refrigerate for one (1) hour.
To Caramelize the Apples:
- In a large, heavy ovenproof skillet over medium heat, melt the butter until foamy. Add the granulated sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to caramelize and turn light brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the apples, orange zest, cloves, and cinnamon until the apples are well coated.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples start to brown, about 10 minutes.
Assemble the Tart:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Bake the tart shell until the dough is very lightly brown, about 15 minutes. If you have pie weights, you can use them during this pre-baking step.
- Whisk the cream, egg yolk, honey, and vanilla together then put aside.
- Remove the tart shell from the oven and arrange the apple wedges in a circle. Remove the cloves.
- Pour cream mixture over and bake for 15 minutes, or until the cream is set.
Notes
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17 Comments
I am just about to try this delicious looking recipe but wonder on the pie dish size – I presume 9inch but can you confirm this please.
Travis
Hello Travis,
Yes, you should use a 9-inch pie plate. Enjoy the recipe!
I assume after it’s removed from the oven it’s supposed to set in fridge overnight to finish? Like crème brûlée normally does? The instructions end abruptly after baking for 15min but the time elapsed for the full recipe shows 9 hours. Please advise. It looks wonderful! Thank you!
Thank you for reading Perfectly Provence and wanting to try Chef François’ delicious dessert recipe. The baking time is 30 minutes (15 for the shell and 15 with the caramelized apples and cream mixture). The dough, if you are making your own, needs to rest for at least 2 hours or overnight. The recipe is correct now.
Fantastic! I hope to try this recipe soon. Once I do, I will leave a review. Thank you for the correction!
So, is this supposed to be served hot, warm, cold????
Hello, The tart can be served warm or at room temperature, either way it is delicious.
Can this be made a day ahead?
Hello, yes you can make the apple creme brûleé in advance. If you have time warm it slightly before serving. Enjoy!
Hi there. Not sure what I did wrong, I followed recipe exactly but when pulling it out of the oven, it was still liquid? Should I let it sit and set more?
Hello again, did it work by baking a little longer?
Also perfect amount of ingredients for a 13 3/4″ x 4 1/2″ x 1″ high rectangular tart tin. Let it sit an hour on the counter before serving. set up perfectly.
Delicious. Thank you!
So glad that you enjoyed the recipe!
This recipe is missing many crucial steps, specifically for pre-baking the pie crust. The crust started puffing up before turning golden brown therefore it needed to specify the use of pie weights. Also the recipes says cloves, ground cloves or whole cloves. Please add more details for better execution.
Thank you for pointing out that the recipe required a bit of clarification. I have updated the details for this delicious dessert that combines apple pie and creme brulée. Enjoy!
Absolutely delicious! I didn’t have all the ingredients on hand (no orange zest or cloves), and I had to use salted grass fed butter. I also added an extra yolk to the filling. Everyone who tried a slice could not stop talking about how good it was. Will be making again for Thanksgiving.
Enjoy this delicious dessert! It will be a great addition to your Thanksgiving dinner.