A while back, my mother in-law came to visit and brought a bag full of cooking apples. Having made a crumble that weekend, I still had a decent amount left over. During the week I pondered about what to do with the leftovers and with the FatSteak club in mind, I wanted to try something new. Trying to resist the urge to go through the cooking books on this one, it didn’t come to me immediately, then during the week on the way home from work, it was there. A tarte tatin. Obvious when you think about it really, and it fitted the bill.

A quick diversion past the shops to pick up some puff pastry and I was off to the races.

In all the excitement, I forgot that I didn’t have a tarte tatin dish!! Not being one who’s too precious about delicate presentation, a frying pan seemed like a good alternative. Not just any frying pan though. The honour went to a 1960s, now handle-less, cast iron frying pan which my Dad gave to me when I first moved out. Still going strong and without the handle, perfect for the oven.

When all was said and done, it worked pretty well.

I did take the sugar a bit too far so there was a hint of burnt caramel and I needed a bigger plate as it stuck up around the edges, but other than that it was tasted by some pudding enthusiasts who gave it a nod. (They did pick up the caramel issue!)

Step 1 - Prep your apples

Heat your oven to 180C
In a bowl large enough to hold the apples, pour a decent glug of lemon juice
Core and peel your apples ( See this excellent gadget )
As each apple is peeled, cut it up into quarters, top to bottom and put in the bowl, making sure it gets a lemon juice coating to stop them going brown
Cover and set aside

Step 2 - The Caramel

Two top tips, when you caramelise sugar it’s like napalm so be very careful and don’t get it on you.
Second watch out, it can go from ‘Come on just melt will you’ to ‘Oh it’s burnt’ very quickly!
In the pan, over a medium heat add the sugar and keep an eye on it
At some point you will see it start to melt and caramelise, don’t be tempted to stir it as it will crystallise, just let it do its thing.
Once it’s all melted and it starts to darken take it off the heat
After a few minutes, add in 90g of the diced butter and stir it through until it’s melted and mixed in with the caramel

Step 3 - The first cook

Take your apples and arrange them, rounded side down into the caramel (Mind you don’t get the caramel on your fingers, it will still be hot enough to hurt)
Fill the pan up, squeeze the apples in tight. Press down on the apples
I had some odd bits which I chopped up and scattered over the top
Melt the remaining butter and brush on the top of the apples
Into the oven and cook for 30 minutes
When done, the caramel will be bubbling around the apples and they should have softened a little and start to golden up

Step 4 - The second cook

Roll out your puff pastry and make a circle a little larger than the top of your tart
Put this on top of your apples, pushing the sides in down around the edges
Poke some holes in it
Put back into the oven for 35 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crispy
Once it’s finished cooking, some patience is required before the unveiling. Leave to stand for roughly an hour
When you are ready, run a sharp knife around the edge to make sure any bits which have caught and have stuck to the pan don’t mess up the extraction
Put a plate on top of the pastry and get ready to flip the right way up
With a tea towel, grab the pan and plate firmly and flip it over. With a little luck it should pop out onto the plate nice and cleanly.
Be cautious lifting the pan, if it looks like its not coming away cleanly, flip back, remove the plate and see if you can free it up with a knife before trying again
Slice and serve with your favourite dairy product, custard, cream, ice cream…

You can see where the sugar caught a little around the edges and the plate with it’s high sides has pushed it up. A large chef’s ring to trim it would have levelled the presentation up a few notches and removed the scorched bits, but like I said, this was a first try so I won’t grumble. It tasted grand!

Frying Pan Tart

Lemon juice
1100g of cooking apples
150g caster sugar (golden caster works better, but white caster sugar or a mix is fine)
100g butter diced (I used salted as that’s what was in the fridge)
Pack of puff pasty