Pear (or apple) Tarte Tatin
This is Julia's apple Tarte Tatin from The Way to Cook. She calls it her "fourth and definitive version." For a pear tart, substitute firm ripe pears, cut in quarters. Boscs are a good choice. Pears are juicier than apples so they take a longer stovetop cooking, and the juice may need further reducing before unmolding.
LA TARTE TATIN
INGREDIENTS:
5 to 6 cooking apples, (Golden Delicious or Granny Smith are fine)
The grated rind and juice of one lemon
1-1/2 cups sugar
3 oz. (6 Tbs.) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2- inch pieces
8 oz. chilled butter pastry dough (a single crust's worth
Optional accompaniment: whipped cream, sour cream, or vanilla ice cream (I like creme fraiche)
EQUIPMENT:
A heavy ovenproof frying pan, such as cast- iron, 9" by 2" with fairly straight sides, or heavy no-stick aluminum.
A cover for the pan
A bulb baster
A large enough flat-bottomed serving dish
PREPARING THE APPLES: Quarter, core and peel the apples; cut the quarters in half lengthwise. Toss in a bowl with the lemon and 1/2 cup of the sugar, and let steep 20 minutes so they will exude their juices. Drain them.
THE CARAMEL: Set the frying pan over moderately high heat with the butter, and when melted blend in the remaining 1 cup sugar. Stir about with a wooden spoon for several minutes, until the syrup turns a bubbly caramel brown; it will smooth out later when the apple juices dissolve the sugar.
ARRANGING THE APPLES IN THE PAN: Remove form heat and arrange a layer of apples nicely in the bottom of the pan in a spiral pattern to make an attractive design. Arrange the rest of the apples on top, close packed and only reasonably neat. Add enough so they heap up 1 inch higher than the rim of the pan; they sink down as they cook.
PRELIMINARY STOVE-TOP COOKING, 20 TO 25 MINUTES: (Preheat the oven to 425* for the next step, placing rack in lower middle level) Set the pan again over moderately high heat, pressing the apples down as they soften, and drawing the accumulated juices up over them with the bulb baster--basting gives the whole mass a deliciously buttery caramel flavor. In several minutes, when the apples begin to soften, cover the pan and continue cooking and basting frequently until the juices are thick and syrupy. Remove from heat, and let cool slightly while you roll out the dough.
THE DOUGH COVER: Roll the chilled dough into a circle 3/16-inch thick and 1 inch larger than the top of your pan. Cut 4 steam holes, 1/4-inch size, 1-1/2 inches from the center of the dough. Working rapidly, fold the dough in half, then in quarters; center the point over the apples. Unfold the dough over the apples and press the edges of the dough down between the apples and the inside of the pan.
BAKING, ABOUT 20 MINUTES AT 425* Bake until the pastry has browned and crisped. Being careful of the red-hot pan handle, remove from the oven.
VERIFICATION: Tilt the pan, and if the juices are runny rather than a thick syrup, boil down rapidly on top of the stove, but be sure not to evaporate them completely, or the apples will stick to the pan.
SERVING: Still remembering that the pan is red hot, turn the serving dish upside down over the pan and reverse the two to unmold the tart. If not quite neat in design, which does happen--rearrange slices as necessary. Serve hot, warm or cold, with the optional cream or ice cream.
