tag: puff pastry

I’ll let you in on a little secret. I wrote a blog post about tarte tatin a long time ago, before I started this blog. It was when I was in LA and considering the whole blogging thing, and I opened a free WordPress account, set the visibility to “private,” and wrote a little post about this French apple tart.

I guess it must not have been the right time. The writing felt stilted, and my photos were from my phone, and there wasn’t enough light in my kitchen, and the apples stuck to the pan. That one post hung there on the internet, lonely and unread, for a year or so until I deleted that account.

I thought it was time to revisit this recipe since this blog now seems to be alive and well. There are good reasons why I thought it would be a good idea to start with this dish on that long-ago blog — it’s fancy-sounding and pretty-looking, but ultimately simple to make, and most of all, it’s one of those desserts that I just crave. Sticky-sweet caramel encasing soft, warm apple pieces that collapse into sauce under your fork, all on top of buttery puff pastry.

Then there’s the flipping of the hot hot pan onto a plate since this is, in essence, and upside-down tart. Some apples will probably stick, but just scrape them off with a spoon and stick ‘em back on the tart. No one will care.

For an extra bit of decadence (and because the foie gras from that party was still around), I shaved a bit of the cold foie gras on top of the slices of tart. If the tart is still a little warm and the foie is very cold, the foie stands up in pretty curls for a few minutes before melting into a rich puddle on the apples. Heaven.

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Posted in: cooking, desserts | Tags: apple, apple pie, apple tart, caramelized apple tart, cooking, dessert, food, french apple tart, french dessert, french food, puff pastry, tarte tatin | 10 COMMENTS

This is one of the appetizers (besides the copious charcuterie and cheese) that I served at our last little get-together.

It’s simple, seasonal, and extremely flavorful — the sweet butternuts squash is accentuated by the chile-infused honey and the crispiness of the puff pastry is mirrored by that of the sage. When I made it, I used an entire bird’s-eye chile and found it a bit too spicy — I’ve scaled that down to 1/2 a chile here to rein it in a bit.

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Posted in: appetizers, cooking, party food | Tags: appetizer, butternut squash, chile, food, honey, hors d'oeuvres, party food, puff pastry, squash, tart, vegetarian | 4 COMMENTS

The arithmetic of baking:

Butter + flour + water + (time x work) = puff pastry.

Puff pastry + heat = delicious flaky layers.

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Posted in: cooking, desserts, party food, snacks | Tags: brie, butter, camembert, cheese, confiture de fraises, pastries, pastry, pop tarts, puff pastry, strawberry, strawberry preserves, tart | 3 COMMENTS

Sometimes, you are invited to two or three apéro/cocktail/dinner parties in one weekend. And clearly, you don’t want to show up empty-handed. And it just so happens that it’s the enchanting time of year when lush, shining berries and figs, leaking juice, are all over the markets. If you ever find yourself in such a situation, make these. Take them to parties on a pretty tray.

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Posted in: appetizers, cooking, party food | Tags: appetizers, berries, butter, cheese, chevre, fruit, hors d'oeuvres, mint, puff pastry | 4 COMMENTS