Name: Tarte Tatin Forki
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: Dough ingredients; 1 shortcrust pastry or puff pastry; Coating; 150 g sugar for making a caramel; 4 Fuji apples, Royal Gala, Granny Smith, Golden (Reineta are not good); 125 g butter; 125 g sugar; 125 ml water; Calvados (optional); 1 lemon; Dough ingredients; 1 egg; 130 g all-purpose flour (or pastry flour); 63 g butter at room temperature; 30 g sugar; salt; 13 g almond flour (OPTIONAL)

Tarte Tatin Forki

The Tarta Tatin offers a crispy base of shortcrust or puff pastry, topped with a caramelized layer of sweet fruit that melts delicately with each bite.

Ingredients

Servings:

Ingredients

Dough ingredients
1 shortcrust pastry or puff pastry
Coating
150 gsugar for making a caramel
4 Fuji apples, Royal Gala, Granny Smith, Golden (Reineta are not good)
125 gbutter
125 gsugar
125 mlwater
Calvados (optional)
1 lemon

Ingredients

Dough ingredients
1 egg
130 gall-purpose flour (or pastry flour)
63 gbutter at room temperature
30 gsugar
salt
13 galmond flour (OPTIONAL)

Nutritional Information

Per Serving (Approx.)

Calories

926 kcal

Protein

10 g

Fat

42 g

Carbohydrates

132 g

Disclaimer: These values are estimates based on ingredient types and may not be precise.

Step-by-step Guide

Tarte Tatin Forki

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Prepare an ovenproof skillet approximately 25 cm in diameter.
Heat the skillet over medium heat and melt 100 grams of sugar, stirring until it caramelizes and reaches a dark golden color, being careful not to burn it.
Peel and quarter 6 apples, removing the core. Once the caramel is ready, add the apples, arranging them in circles, and cook for about 10 minutes until they begin to soften slightly.
Cut 50 grams of butter into small cubes and distribute them evenly over the apples. Then, cover with a sheet of puff pastry, pressing the edges down.
Bake the skillet in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until the puff pastry is golden and risen.
Remove the pan from the oven and let it rest at room temperature for about 5 minutes. Then, with caution, turn the tarte Tatin over onto a serving plate.

This Looks Quite Good

To save time, you can use store-bought shortcrust pastry or puff pastry as a base for the tart. These bases are ideal if you want to speed up the preparation and simplify the process.
If you want to prepare the pastry at home, instructions are provided at the end for a step-by-step guide. Important note if making the shortcrust pastry yourself: it is crucial to work with ALL ingredients thoroughly chilled. It is advisable to place the flour and sugar in the refrigerator the night before. The butter should also be used cold, directly from the refrigerator. The shortcrust dough can be prepared a day in advance and left in the refrigerator until the next day to achieve the desired texture.
For an 18 cm diameter mold, you will need the following ingredients for the dough: 1 sheet of shortcrust pastry or puff pastry, 150 grams of sugar to make a caramel, 4-5 Fuji, Royal Gala, Granny Smith, or Golden apples (avoid Reineta), 125 grams of butter, 125 grams of sugar, 125 ml of water, a splash of Calvados (optional), and the juice of 1/2 lemon.

Mold Ø 18 cm-20 cm

The Tatin is prepared upside down in the mold. First, cover the bottom of the mold with an even layer of liquid caramel. Next, place the pre-sliced and prepared apples over the caramel, ensuring they are evenly distributed. Finally, cover the apples with a sheet of shortcrust pastry. Bake the Tatin in a preheated oven at 180°C for 35-40 minutes, until the pastry is golden and crispy. Once baked, let it cool slightly for about 10 minutes before turning it over and unmolding it for serving.

Cooking the Apple

First, we prepare the caramel in a saucepan.
In a saucepan, place 100 g of sugar and a teaspoon of lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until the sugar acquires a golden caramel color (not dark). Stir gently and ensure it doesn’t burn.
Pour the caramel evenly at the bottom of the prepared mold. Set aside for later.
Peel the apples, cut them into 8 parts each, and carefully remove the core and seeds.
In a pot, bring 125 g of sugar, 125 ml of water, and 125 g of butter to a boil.
When the liquid begins to boil, immerse the apple pieces, reduce to medium heat, and let them cook for 10 minutes. The apple pieces should be completely submerged for the tatin to turn out tender.
Once they have boiled for 10 minutes, place the apple pieces in a colander to drain and remove excess liquid.
The remaining liquid can be reserved for use in other preparations if desired.
Distribute the apple pieces evenly over the caramel in the mold, forming a kind of fan.
Pour a few drops of Calvados (or lemon juice) over the already placed apples and let cool for 30 minutes to gain consistency.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C, activating the top and bottom heat mode to ensure even cooking.

Position the Base Dough and Final Baking

Roll out the base of shortcrust pastry or puff pastry on a slightly floured surface. Cut a disc that is slightly larger than the mold, as the dough may shrink during baking.
Place the pastry disc over the apples, fitting it well, and press the edges down to the bottom of the mold to ensure a good seal.
Prick the pastry several times with a fork to allow steam to escape during baking.
Preheat the oven to 180°C and bake the pie for 45 minutes. The surface should be golden in color.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it rest for 20 minutes in the mold. During this time, the apple will absorb much of the liquid caramel.
Before flipping the cake, cover it with a plate and allow the excess caramel to drip. This caramel can be reserved for other preparations.
Unmold the cake directly onto the serving plate and let it cool slightly.
The cake will taste better if you wait an hour before serving it, so it cools down but remains slightly warm.

If We Want to Prepare a Shortcrust Pastry at Home

Sift the flour into a large bowl to ensure there are no lumps and the batter is smooth and homogeneous.
Shortcrust pastry should not be kneaded like bread. We simply need to mix the ingredients by pinching, so they integrate while maintaining a crumbly texture, like small pebbles.
First, mix the flour with a pinch of salt (and almond flour if you wish to use it) with the cold butter, straight from the refrigerator. Using a spatula or dough scraper, crumble the butter into small cubes and mix it with the flour, always keeping some small visible chunks. Avoid warming the dough with your hands.
Add the sugar and whole egg, and continue pinching and mixing with your fingers until all the ingredients are combined, maintaining the dough's lumpy appearance. Avoid overworking the dough to prevent gluten development, allocating a maximum of 5 minutes for this process.
Once crumbled well, gather the dough to form a ball, without pressing or compacting excessively. If more moisture is needed, slightly moisten your fingers and press gently, but never add water directly.
Now it's time to "brisè" the dough. Flatten it and stretch it in three different directions. Fold it gently without compacting and stretch it again in three directions, repeating the process a third time. This will help to develop the layers.
Once the pastry is made, form it into a ball without compacting, pressing gently, lightly dust with flour, wrap in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for about 2-3 hours to ensure it remains firm.
After the resting time, generously flour the work surface to prevent the dough from sticking while rolling it out.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and, if it is sufficiently cold, roll it out with a rolling pin until you achieve a disc slightly larger than the size of the pan. If it is not cold enough, it crumbles or breaks easily.
With the help of the rolling pin, place the dough over the pan, gently pressing over the apples or the desired filling.
Prick the dough surface with a fork to allow steam to escape during baking. This helps prevent bubbles from forming.

Recommendations & Tricks

During cooking, the caramel may contract. Make sure to distribute the apple pieces well so they are evenly covered and no empty spaces appear when it contracts.
When incorporating the butter into the flour, use a spatula or a pastry cutter. This will prevent the dough from warming up from your hands and maintain its cool and crisp texture.
Add the sugar and the whole egg little by little, pinching the flour between your fingers to gradually incorporate the ingredients until the dough appears crumbly yet homogeneous.
Do not overwork the dough. Mix just enough to combine the ingredients, as developing gluten can cause the dough to lose its ideal lightness.
Once the dough is well crumbled, gently gather it into a ball. If you notice that the dough is not coming together, lightly moisten your fingers and press gently, but avoid adding water directly in order not to alter the texture.
To laminate the dough, roll it out into a rectangle and fold it in three different directions. Repeat this process three times, applying gentle pressure to ensure the dough is not excessively compacted.