Apple Rose Tart
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Preparation time: 2 hours
Cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes
For pecan pie crust
- 200g/7ozs plain all purpose flour (you may need a little bit more or less)
- 55g/2ozs. toasted pecans
- 45g/1.6ozs. caster or superfine sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 113g/1 stick butter, cold and cubed
For the pecan frangipane
- 165g/5.8zs. toasted pecans
- 100g/3.5ozs. caster or superfine sugar
- 125/4ozs butter
- 2 large eggs
For apple roses
- 6-7 bright red apples (I used Royal Gala around 115g/4ozs. each)
- 250ml/8.8ozs sugar
- 250ml/8.8ozs water
- 60ml/2flozs. lemon juice
Step 1 - Make the tart crust pastry. Process the flour, nuts, sugar and salt together until they resemble fine crumbs. Then add the butter and pulse until it starts to come together. You shouldn't need any water or liquid to bind this as the nuts have fat in them but if you do please add water sparingly. Shape into a ball and flatten and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Step 2 - Meanwhile make the frangipane filling by placing the pecans and sugar in a food processor or Thermomix and processing until you get a fine crumb. Then add the butter and eggs and process until smooth. Set aside (or refrigerate if you are using later).
Step 3 - At this point you can also make the sugar syrup for the roses as it needs to cool. Make sugar syrup by boiling sugar and water for 5-8 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and it has thickened slightly (you do not want a very thick syrup). Cool and add lemon juice.
Step 4 - Grease a loose bottomed 23cm/9inch tart tin. Roll out the pastry between two sheets of parchment (if it is too stiff which it may be if it has been refrigerated for a long time, let it rest on the counter for 5-10 minutes). Place in the tin press down gently and make sure that it is as even as possible. You should use you pretty much the entire pastry dough. Use pieces to patch any holes. Dock with a fork and then refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Cover with oiled foil and fill the pie with pastry weights. Bake for 20 minutes covered with the foil and weights. Then remove the foil and weights and bake for 5 minutes until bottom is set.
Step 5 - Spread out frangipane over the base with an angled metal spatula and bake at 180C/350F for 20 minutes. Cool while you make the apple roses.
Step 6 - Core apples and using a mandolin on #1 setting slice into a bowl. Some will be half moons, some whole moons it is ok. Soak the slices in the syrup for 15 minutes until they can easily bend. The apples will release juice too.
Step 7 - Line up 7-10 half moon slices of apple overlapping as shown and roll them up from one end to form a flower. Add the larger slices to make the outer petals and place on the tart. Repeat until the tart is covered with flowers; this takes time and patience.
Step 8 - Bake in a 180C/350F oven for 15-20 minutes to soften the apples. Serve with vanilla ice cream.