Burnt Edges

I don't make desserts at home as often as I would like. I bake cookies to satisfy my snacking tendencies, and then there are the birthday cakes, but on the whole, desserts are a rarity because I would end up eating the biggest share. So it does feel particularly special when I come up with a simple recipe that satisfies my sweet tooth without piling on the guilt, like this apple tart.



The recipe came about partly from inspiration, but mostly from necessity. An apple pie was requested, but I didn't have enough apples for a pie, and some left-over ricotta needed using up: a riff on the classic French tarte fine was in order!



Tarte fine simply means a thin tart, implying a single-crusted pie that is not only dainty but very thin indeed. Basically, this tart is a crisp slice of not very much, so completely sin-free! And so easy to whip up when using ready-made puff pastry. If you, unlike myself, are not a lazy home-baker, and would prefer making everything from scratch, use your favourite flaky or rough puff recipe, or this sweet short crust pastry.



Classic tarte fine are usually filled simply with sliced fruits, a sprinkling of sugar and the occasional dusting of bread crumbs or ground almonds to soak up the juiciness. Here, the ricotta adds body and lusciousness, a little like the custard in fresh fruit tarts, but without the extra work. If nut allergies are an issue, they can be substituted with bread crumbs (a rosemary-flavoured one would work really well) or some fine semolina.



About those apples: when I worked in pastry, my head chefs were always very particular about the type of apple used. Golden delicious were a firm favourite in France, but I find those rather bland; in the UK, Braeburn is often the cooking apple of choice, and I must agree it has a nice flavour, though it does occasionally overcook into mush; in North-America, Russets are the preferred baking apples, and they are one of my favourites, however, they might be difficult to find this late in the season. To be honest, any apple can be used here: MacIntosh were the only local apples I could find on a recent shop run, so they were what I used. Although Macs were a childhood favourite, I have mostly outgrown my love of soft foods, but they actually work very well here. Little sidebar, JonaMac, a Mac offspring, is very unlike its parent and is a lovely all-purpose apple.



Apple, Ricotta and Almond Tarte Fine
Serves 6-8 people

1 ready-made sheet of puff pastry, 25-30cm/ 10"-12"
2 medium apples
200g/1 cup ricotta
60g/ ½cup ground almond
50g/ ⅓ cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling on top

Pre-heat oven to 200°C/425°F. Lay puff pastry on a lined baking sheet, and keep chilled.
If using home-made pastry, roll out to about 3mm thickness (a little over an eighth of an inch) in a square or round shape, though free-form is fine too. Keep chilled until needed.
Peel, quarter and core the apples, and slice very thinly, keep in a bowl of water to prevent browning.
Mix together the ricotta, ground almond and sugar together. Taste to adjust the sweetness level, if necessary.
Spread ricotta filling onto the prepared pastry, leaving a 2cm/ ¾" margin around the edge.
Drain the sliced apples, and lay out on top of the ricotta. Sprinkle with the extra sugar.
Fold over the edges, pinching the pastry wherever there is an overlap.
Place on the middle shelf of the oven, and leave to bake for 15 minutes. Check on the tart when the time is up: you may need to turn the tray around. Bake for a further 10-15 minutes, depending on how even the oven, you may need to turn on the grill for the last 5 minutes.
When evenly browned, remove from oven and allow to cool down.
Serve with a dusting of icing sugar and lashings of cream or custard. Or ice cream..



Given the thinness of this tart and the ricotta filling, the crust will dampen slightly overnight, so it is best eaten the day it is made. However, it can easily be crisped up in a dry frying pan. For extra-special occasions, add a bit of shine to the tart by brushing on some apricot jam. I haven't done so this time, but I've been asked to make a tart for a potluck dinner later this week, so I ust might have to get a jar of apricot jam...



Bon App'!