October has crept up and the temperatures have dropped. With the nights drawing in and the weather taking a turn we seek out comforting foods. The kind of foods you want to curl up on the sofa with for a moment of bliss. This Apple Tart with Cinnamon Caramel is one of my absolute favourite desserts. For me this may as well be a hug from the inside.
This apple tart really is so simple; the most technical thing you are doing is making a caramel sauce. Whilst this can seem intimidating I promise it really is mostly watching pan. You wait until you see the caramel colour you want and can smell that sticky, sweet scent. Then remove from the heat and, with a little caution, mix in butter and cream until smooth. If you feel it start to seize then put it back on the heat and continue to mix this will smooth everything out. I love the addition of cinnamon to this sweet sauce. In fact I love dipping slice of apple into it as a dip, another great snack.
The adhesive layer that attaches the apples to the pastry is something some people find surprising – ricotta. This is soft cheese that has a mild flavour and works so well in this tart. It has a slight savoury edge that balances the sweet cinnamon caramel. I swirl a couple of tablespoons of the caramel into the ricotta and this is the most delicious glue I can think of.
The crisp, buttery puff pastry is the ideal blanket to enfold around these thinly sliced apples. I use a sheet of ready rolled, shop bought puff pastry. This makes this a super quick build. You just unroll your pastry sheet, spread ricotta and caramel over, arrange the apples, drizzle more caramel, quick fold and egg wash, then park it in the oven and in 35-45 mins you will have a beautiful autumnal dessert.
I find this works best with thinly sliced apples. Whilst this does take up a little more time, it does make you feel very accomplished when the thin even slices top this tart. You will get so many people asking for seconds it might be worth making two!
A quick word on making ahead of time. If you want to prepare this Apple Tart with Cinnamon Caramel ahead of time and freeze I would build everything and freeze before baking. Then when it comes to baking add on another 15 minutes or so and you could cover with foil to stop it browning too much.
I am confident you will love this recipe and would love to hear what you thought in the comments below. You can share your pictures on social media with me. Tag me on Instagram @cubbinthekitchen or use the #CUBBintheKitchen to be featured in my stories. For another dessert idea check out my red velvet cake recipe.
Apple Tart with Cinnamon Caramel
Ingredients
For the Tart
- 1 Sheet Reday Rolled Puff Pastry
- 3-4 Apples
- 85 grams Ricotta
- 1 Egg
For the Cinnamon Caramel
- 250 grams Caster Sugar
- 4 tbsp Water
- 142 ml Double Cream
- 50 grams Butter
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
Instructions
- First make the caramel – Add the Caster Sugar and 4 Tbsp Water to a pan and swirl to dissolve the sugar.Place over a medium heat and bring to a boil.Allow to bubble for 4-5 minutes until you have a rich caramel colour and can smell the sugar starting to caramelise.
- Once you have the deep amber colour take the pan off the heat and being careful stir in the Cream, Butter & Cinnamon until combined rich and smooth.Set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 200°
- Core and halve the Apples.Slice the Apples into thin even slices.
- Unroll your sheet of Pastry and place onto a tray lined with baking paper.Spread the Ricotta over the pastry leaving a gap of about 2.5cm (or 1 inch) around the edges.Drizzle 2 tbsp of the Cinnamon Caramel Sauce and swirl into the Ricotta.
- Arrange the thinly sliced Apples over the swirled Caramel & Ricotta.Drizzle more Caramel over the top 2 – 3 Tbsp.
- Fold the edges up over the edges of the Apples.Beat the Egg with a splash of water and brush over the Pastry.
- Bake in the Oven for 35-45 mins until the pastry is crisp ad the apples cooked.Enjoy warm with ice cream and more cinnamon caramel sauce.
