If only everyday could be full of blue skies with puffy clouds, moderate breezes and me eating an endless supply of freshly baked tart crust and potato salad (separately of course), well that sounds a bit like heaven to me. Thankfully my afternoon has been just that, and now I can contentedly wait for round two when we have a BBQ later this evening. No one will miss a stray potato or a scrap of crust, will they???
I had planned on baking something from an old cookbook (dated 1895) my cousin brought over last week, a discovery he made in the cupboard of his mother’s kitchen, but along about Wednesday morning I peeked out into the backyard and “what to my wondering eyes should appear” but apples gently resting in the mounds of sea grass underneath the apple tree.
I’ve been keeping a steady eye on the apples since their first appearance in late spring. Last year an ill occurring frost obliterated any chance of blossoms and forthcoming apples, so when I saw the tree in bloom earlier this year I had high hopes for a bountiful crop in which to create yummy pies, tarts and cakes. Unfortunately, I only ended up with seven apples so that kind of ruled out making shelves and display cases full of apple desserts (because apparently our one, little dwarf Golden Delicious produces bushels and bushels of fruit in my imagination). Considering the previous year’s production of zero, I’m happy to take seven with a smile on my face.
It’s so much more gratifying to grow your own fruit than to go to the store or even to the farmer’s market. There is a feeling of pride that comes with knowing you watched and waited patiently for something in your own backyard to develop and become ready for consumption. Farming is an exercise in longing more than anything (again, not that I’m farming with a single apple tree out back), but anytime you’ve taken the time to plant something with love, water it, feed it and say nice things to it from time to time, watched it grow and kept an eye on it until it’s ready to eat or freeze or even put in a vase…well, then you understand the patience and desire I’m speaking of. My apples feel like that for me.
September is really the start of apple season. I’m hoping to get out to a nearby apple farm later in the month or early in October to stock up and work on my traditional pie baking skills, taste some cider and maybe score an apple doughnut or two, but for now I’m satisfied with the Barefoot Contessa’s French Apple Tart. In fact, it turned out to be a Barefoot Contessa kind of day…now how bad can that be?
Since it’s Labor Day weekend and I have three days to relax and unwind, I wanted to spend at least one of those days in the kitchen. I know it sounds like work to a lot of people, but to get a whole morning or afternoon in the kitchen without interruption or having to run off anywhere is like a dream. If it is work, then it’s certainly satisfying with a tasteful payoff. I often find myself in the most Zen-like of moments when I’m slicing fruit or rolling out dough, nothing matters but the task at hand. The dough is a living thing that either comes together nicely and rolls out beautifully, or it’s angry, dry, cracked or on occasion soggy. When you get ”happy” dough, the rest of the day can be a happy one too.
I’ve really been working a lot on my dough skills…tart crusts in particular as of late. I think people often over mix and end up with an over-combined mess on their hands. Particularly with tart dough it’s important to see flecks of butter in your pastry…when the heat of the oven hits those tiny pieces, the puffing begins. If your butter is too evenly disturbed, you aren’t going to get the flakey rise you are looking for.
It’s also important not to add too much flour. Flour is something that should never be packed into the measuring cup. You should always loosen your flour (if it’s stored in a container) with the measuring cup before you scoop it. Mix it up so it’s not so clumped together and then lightly use the measuring cup, leveling the top with your hand or a knife. The amount of flour you will end up with is vastly different from a compacted scoop…this excess of flour can really cause you to end up with a dry pastry.
And I know I’ve said this before, but if you are using a mixer or food processor to bring together your dough, stop mixing just before it “comes together”. Sometimes the dough will look like there are moist sections with crumbly, dry bits of flour still hanging out, but once you turn the dough onto your floured counter top and give it a couple of kneads it will come together beautifully.
What was so nice about this morning, aside from the remarkably cooled off temperatures was the breeze. I was able to turn off the air conditioner, open up all the windows and turn on the oven without feeling like I was going to melt into a puddle on the floor. People were out mowing their lawns getting ready for parties and guests; the smell of freshly cut grass mingling with the butterfly bushes outside was spectacular. After finishing my coffee, it was time to bake.
As I said earlier, it was a Barefoot Contessa kind of day. I not only wanted to make a dessert, but also a side dish of potato salad to take over to our friend’s Izabella and Jonathan’s (and Mia’s) for a BBQ. I don’t care how many times I make something of Ina Garten’s, I can never, ever find anything wrong with it and most of the time it truly is one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. I assume she really tests her recipes and spends countless hours tweaking and changing things to get the perfect balance of any dish. I’ve preached about her many times over, and if you don’t have one of her cookbooks in your kitchen yet then you are doing yourself a grave injustice.
The French Apple Tart is in her Back to Basics book, and the Old-Fashioned Potato Salad is in Barefoot Contessa at Home. These recipes were great to make in tandem because while the dough was chilling I could work on the potatoes, and while the potatoes cooled off I could start slicing the apples for the tart, etc… When one step was complete on one, it was time to do the next thing on the other…and I ended up with constant motion on both, arriving at the peak, deliciously fattening climax of the two recipes at almost the same time. I like it when a plan comes together.
I won’t go into how to make a potato salad here, it’s rather off topic, but the tart is another story. As always I started with the dough. This dough is again made in a food processor, then flattened into a disk, wrapped in plastic wrap and chilled in the fridge for at least an hour. (Make sure you see the little pieces of butter in your dough). After the dough has chilled, roll it out to a 10x14 inch (roughly) rectangle, trimming the edges with a knife for a clean presentation…though I think it would look quite nice and rustic if you leave the edges unfinished. The dough can stay on a parchment lined sheet pan in the refrigerator until you are ready to cover it with apples.
Second, is the apple preparation. The recipe calls for 4 Granny Smith apples, but my Golden Delicious seemed to work out fine. The only work is in the peeling and coring, and then it’s a matter of making 1/4-inch slices. I did toss them with a little bit of lemon juice to keep the oxidation to a minimum. Lay them out in a nice pattern all along the pastry dough, top them with 1/2 cup of sugar and 4 tablespoons of diced butter. Bake in a 400-degree oven for about 45 minutes and you will have a glorious apple tart. Tip: if you find your pastry rising up forming bubbles while baking, gently pierce them with a knife so the dough collapses once more.
The only remaining step is to heat some apricot jam (1/2 cup) mixed with two tablespoons of rum or water until you can paint it onto the tart as a glaze. This not only adds flavor but also seals the tart, helping it to retain its loveliness for just a little while longer. Maybe you will find yourself with some time on your hands over this long weekend and try the recipe out for yourself. This tart is another one of those things that look a bit complicated, but when you break it down into manageable portions you’ll find it to be quite easy and worth your time…and of course supremely delicious.
We don’t really have any more holidays for a while and the kids are heading back to school next week. The mums are starting to bloom and a few leaves are already starting to turn near where we live; even the leaves on my lilac bushes have changed to a deep burgundy color effectively warning me of fall’s proximity. Fall has always been my favorite time of year largely for the quiet it brings along with the harvest and the bright colors painted through the woods and across the mountaintops. As the chill creeps into the air more apples will begin to ripen, and maybe you’ll find the time to pick a few off the branch or up off the ground, dust them off and turn them into something miraculous. Or at least give it a shot. I know I have one or two more apple desserts left in me, waiting to come out. It’s just who I am.
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