The Catalan TableIngredients
Servings:
4
Ingredients
- 5 apples
- 50 gbutter
- 100 gwhite sugar
- 75 mlwater
- cinnamon
- powdered sugar
Nutritional Information
Per Serving (Approx.)
Calories
251 kcal
Protein
0 g
Fat
10 g
Carbohydrates
43 g
Disclaimer: These values are estimates based on ingredient types and may not be precise.
Step-by-step Guide
Make a Pastry Cream ()
- Scald the milk together with the vanilla pod until it's about to boil, but do not let it actually boil. This will take approximately 5 minutes on medium heat.
- In a bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until the mixture lightens in color. Add the sifted flour and cornstarch, integrating them until you obtain a smooth and homogeneous batter.
- Remove the vanilla pod from the milk and slowly pour the hot milk over the yolk mixture, stirring constantly to prevent the yolks from cooking. Continue mixing until the mixture is uniform.
- Return the mixture to the heat on low temperature and cook, stirring constantly with a spatula, until the cream thickens. This will take about 10 minutes. It's important to ensure the cream does not come to a boil.
- Once the cream is thickened, let it cool at room temperature, covering the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a crust from forming. If you prefer to save time, you can use the instant cold cream sold by Baltà bakery, which is highly effective.
Pastry
- Peel the apples and slice them into very thin rings. Remove the harder central part.
- In a saucepan, place the sliced apples, sugar, butter, and water. Cook over low heat for about 10-15 minutes until the apples caramelize. Do not stir too much to prevent the apples from breaking.
- In the same dish where we will present the cake, alternate layers of caramelized apple and layers of pastry cream. Note: Reserve some caramelized apples for the final layer.
- Cover with a final layer of caramelized apple. Sprinkle icing sugar on top.
- Lightly gratin in the oven at 180°C for about 5 minutes, or until the sugar is lightly golden.
Recommendations & Tricks
- Make sure to save some very thin apple slices for the final layer of the tart. This will ensure a delicate presentation and a notable contrast of textures.
- As for the caramelized apples, prepare them in a pan with butter and sugar until they are nicely golden and tender. Add a pinch of cinnamon to flavor them before placing them on top of the pastry cream.
- Carefully sprinkle a fine layer of powdered sugar over the caramelized apples to give it an elegant and sweet touch. This will help balance the flavors and give a professional appearance.
- Bake the tart in a preheated oven at 200°C for 5 minutes or until the powdered sugar is slightly caramelized and the apples have a nice golden hue. This will add a final touch of flavor and texture to your dessert.