Plantain Tarte Tatin Recipes

Steps:

• In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, place the flours, sugar and butter. Pulse 5 or 6 times in 1/2-second bursts to break up the butter. Add the shortening, turn on the machine and immediately add the ice water, pulsing 2 or 3 times. The dough should look like a mass of smallish lumps and should just hold together in a mass when a handful is pressed together. If the mixture is too dry, pulse in more water by droplets.
• Turn the dough out onto the work surface and with the heel of your hand, rapidly and roughly push egg-size blobs into a 6-inch smear. Gather the dough into a relatively smooth cake, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 2 hours (or up to 2 days).
• Slice the halved apples into 4 lengthwise wedges each, and toss in a large bowl with the lemon juice and zest and 1/2 cup sugar. Drain the apples after macerating 20 minutes.
• In a 9-inch skillet melt the butter over high heat. Stir in the remaining sugar and cook until the syrup bubbles and caramelizes, and turns a brown color. Remove the pan from the heat and arrange a layer of apple slices in a neat pattern on the caramel in the skillet, then arrange the remaining apples neatly on top.
• Return the pan to moderately high heat and cook for about 25 minutes, covering the pan after 10 minutes. Every few minutes press down on the apples and baste them with the exuded juices. When the juices are thick and syrupy, remove the pan from the heat.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough into a circle, 3/16-inch thick and 1-inch larger than the top of the pan. Drape the dough over the apples, pressing the edge of the dough between the apples and the inside of the pan. Cut 4 small steam holes on the top of the dough. Bake until the pastry has browned and crisped, about 20 minutes.
• Unmold the tart onto a serving dish (so the pastry is on the bottom), and serve warm or cold with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, as desired.

Steps:

• Prepare the pastry by combining the flour and salt in a bowl. Rub in the butter and shortening until incorporated, and the mixture takes on a sandy appearance. Combine the egg and water, and stir into the flour mixture until a dough forms, then knead for a few turns to bring the dough together. Wrap well, and chill for 3 hours in the refrigerator.
• While dough is chilling, peel plantains and cut into thirds. Place into a small saucepan with a little water. Bring to a simmer and steam until tender, 5 to 10 minutes depending on how ripe your plantains are. Once soft, pour out the water, and mash plantains with sugar, vanilla, nutmeg, and red food coloring. Set aside to cool.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thick. Cut into circles using a 4 or 5-inch round cookie cutter. Spoon a little of the plantain filling into the center of each circle, then fold in half, to form a half-moon shape. Place the tarts on a baking sheet, brush with beaten egg white, and sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Allow tarts to cool to room temperature before serving.

Steps:

• At least one day before you plan to cook the tart, prepare the apples: Slice off the bottom of each apple so it has a flat base. Peel and quarter the apples. Use a small sharp knife to trim the hard cores and seeds from the center of each quarter; don't worry about being too neat. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate, lightly covered, for at least one day or up to three days. (This key step reduces the amount of liquid in the tart. Don't worry if the apples turn brown; they will be browned during the cooking anyway.)
• When ready to cook, heat oven to 375 degrees (or 350 if using convection). Thickly coat the bottom of a 10-inch heavy ovenproof skillet, preferably nonstick metal, with butter. Sprinkle sugar evenly on top.
• Cut one piece of apple into a thick round disk and place in the center of the skillet to serve as the "button." Arrange the remaining apple pieces, each one standing on its flat end, in concentric circles around the button. Keep the pieces close together so that they support one another, standing upright. They will look like the petals of a flower.
• On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry about 1/8-inch thick. Place an upside-down bowl or pan on the pastry and use the tip of a sharp knife to cut out a circle about the same size as the top of your skillet. Lift out the circle and drape gently over the apples. Use your hands to tuck the pastry around the apple pieces, hugging them together firmly.
• Place the skillet on the stovetop over medium heat until golden-brown juice begins to bubble around the edges, 3 minutes (if the juices keep rising, spoon out as needed to remain level with pastry). If necessary, raise the heat so that the juices are at a boil. Keep cooking until the juices are turning darker brown and smell caramelized, no longer than 10 minutes more.
• Transfer skillet to the oven and bake 45 to 50 minutes, until puff pastry is browned and firm.
• Let cool 5 minutes, then carefully turn out onto a round serving plate. (Or, if not serving immediately, let cool completely in the pan; when ready to serve, rewarm for 15 minutes in a 350-degree oven before turning out.) If any apples remain stuck in the pan, gently use your fingers or a spatula to retrieve them, and rearrange on the pastry shell. Cut in wedges and serve warm with heavy cream, crème fraîche or vanilla ice cream.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Peel and core the apples, then cut them into quarters.
• Spread the butter on the bottom of a 12-inch ovensafe nonstick skillet. Mix the sugar, salt and vanilla together to evenly distribute the caviar. Sprinkle the sugar mixture evenly over the butter. Squeeze over the lemon juice.
• Place the apple quarters cut-side up on top. Remember, the bottom will become the top so make it look pretty. Put the pan over medium heat and cook until the sugar melts, caramelizes and begins to thicken. The apples will release their juices during this process, so it could take 10 to 15 minutes. If the juices start getting too dark, lower the heat a little.
• While the apples are cooking, take the puff pastry out of the fridge. Use a knife to cut a circle just big enough to fit over the top of the apples in the skillet. Keep chilled.
• When the sugar has caramelized, place the pastry circle over the apples, gently tucking in the sides. Transfer to the oven and bake until the pastry is risen and golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Let rest 10 to 15 minutes.
• Carefully turn the tarte tatin out onto a serving plate. Serve with whipped cream.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss both kinds of potatoes, the parsnips, onion, garlic, olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet; bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Let cool slightly.
• Meanwhile, mix 2 tablespoons water and the sugar in a skillet and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan, until amber, about 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vinegar and 1/4teaspoon each salt and pepper. Pour the caramel into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish and spread with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the sage and oregano on top.
• Arrange the roasted potatoes and parsnips in a single snug layer on top of the caramel. Scatter the onion and garlic over the roasted vegetables; sprinkle evenly with the mozzarella.
• Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface into a 9-by-13-inch rectangle. Pierce the pastry all over with a fork, then lay it on top of the mozzarella, folding the edges under to fit, if necessary. Bake 20 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking until the dough is cooked through, 15 to 20 more minutes.
• Let the tart cool 10 minutes in the baking dish, then carefully invert it onto a cutting board. Replace any vegetables that stick to the dish, if necessary.

Steps:

• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Coarsely grate 2 sticks (1 cup) of the butter on the large holes of a box grater onto one of the prepared baking sheets. Toss the butter with a sprinkle of flour and arrange the butter in an even layer on the prepared sheet. Freeze until rock solid, about 30 minutes.
• Whisk together the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Fold in the frozen butter pieces. Slowly drizzle in 1/2 cup ice water, whisking with a fork until small pieces form and the dough just starts to come together, being careful not to overwork it. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll out into a 12-by-1/4-inch-thick circle. Transfer to the other prepared baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, peel, core and halve the apples. Cut all but one of the apple halves in half again. Put the lemon juice in a large bowl and toss the apple pieces with the lemon juice; set aside. Cut the remaining 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter into small cubes; set aside.
• Sprinkle the sugar over the bottom of a large ovenproof skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until melted and amber brown, about 6 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and whisk in the cubed butter until melted and smooth (the sugar will start to bubble as the butter cools it down).
• Place the apple half in the center of the skillet rounded-side down. Arrange the remaining apple quarters rounded-side down in a tight circle around the center apple, making sure there is as little space between the apples as possible (any space left between apples will cause the tart to collapse when flipped out of the skillet).
• Place the pastry round on top and carefully tuck the edges down around the apples. Poke the pastry all over with a fork. Bake until the apples are cooked through and the pastry is golden brown, about 1 hour. Let cool for 5 minutes in the skillet; any longer will cause the caramel to harden and make it very hard to get the tart out of the skillet. Place a serving dish or cake stand upside down on top of the skillet. Using oven mitts, carefully flip the skillet over to invert the tart onto the serving dish. Slice and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Roll puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness; place in the refrigerator.
• Melt butter in a 9-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat; stir in brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and cook and stir until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Stir maple syrup into brown sugar mixture; cook, stirring, until mixture begins to bubble. Remove skillet from heat.
• Place one pear half, cut side up, into the center of skillet. Cut remaining pear halves in half again; arrange pear quarters around the center pear, cut sides up.
• Place skillet over medium-low heat; cook pears, basting with syrup mixture, until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
• Remove puff pastry from refrigerator; place pastry over pears, tucking edges of pastry around pears inside skillet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until pastry is puffed and golden, about 20 minutes; allow to cool for 5 minutes. Place a serving plate over skillet; invert to remove tart (skillet will still be hot). Serve warm.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Roll pastry sheet into a 101/2-inch square on a floured work surface with a floured rolling pin. Brush off excess flour and cut out a 10-inch round with a sharp knife, using a plate as a guide. Transfer round to a baking sheet and chill.
• Spread butter thickly on bottom and side of skillet and pour sugar evenly over bottom. Arrange as many apples as will fit vertically on sugar, packing them tightly in concentric circles. Apples will stick up above rim of skillet.
• Cook apples over moderately high heat, undisturbed, until juices are deep golden and bubbling, 18 to 25 minutes. (Don't worry if juices color unevenly.)
• Put skillet in middle of oven over a piece of foil to catch any drips. Bake 20 minutes (apples will settle slightly), then remove from oven and lay pastry round over apples.
• Bake tart until pastry is browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer skillet to a rack and cool at least 10 minutes.
• Just before serving, invert a platter with lip over skillet and, using potholders to hold skillet and plate tightly together, invert tart onto platter. Replace any apples that stick to skillet. (Don't worry if there are black spots; they won't affect the flavor of the tart.) Brush any excess caramel from skillet over apples. Serve immediately.

Steps:

• Halve and core apples. Set aside one half. Quarter remaining apples and transfer to a large bowl. Squeeze lemon over apple slices and set aside.
• Combine sugar and water in a 9-inch cast-iron skillet. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat; immediately reduce heat to medium and cook until mixture begins to thicken and turn amber. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
• Place reserved apples in center of skillet. Decoratively arrange remaining apple slices, cut side up, in skillet around reserved apples. Continue layering slices until level with top of skillet. Cut any remaining apples into thick slices to fill in gaps. If fruit does not completely fill pan, tart will collapse when inverted.
• Place skillet over low heat and cook until syrup thickens and is reduced by half, about 20 minutes. Do not let syrup burn. Remove from heat and let cool.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
• Roll out pate brisee to a 10- to 11-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick; transfer to a baking sheet and chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Place pate brisee over apples and tuck edges. Transfer skillet to prepared baking sheet; transfer baking sheet to oven and bake until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool 15 to 20 minutes. Loosen pastry from skillet using a sharp knife. Place a rimmed platter over skillet; quickly and carefully invert. Serve immediately.