Crostata di mele e crema

I love apple tarts, they are my preferred ones. My first tempt of baking, many years ago, was an apple cake, and the first crostata I’ve tried to bake was an apple tart. The smell of cooked apples is something that I could not forget, reminds me home, sense of warmth and comfortably pleasure. Although I particularly love the classic version of this Italian pie, I also experiment it in various ways, never getting tired to try new textures and combinations. This time I played with a custard made with a mild apple mousse and the result exceeded my expectations! This special crema pasticcera enhances the apples even more, giving to them an extra nuance. I suggest you to prepare it in advance and resist to eat it for at least one day. 

Crostata di mele e crema
Cream apple tart

18cm tart tin

Shortcrust pastry 

    • 150gr plain flour (00 type – T405)

    • 30gr almond flour

    • two yolks

    • 80gr caster sugar

    • 90gr unsalted chilled butter

    • half teaspoon baking powder

    • lemon zest

    • Salt

Put the flour, the caster sugar and the lemon zest into a bowl and mix together. Add the butter in small cubes and rub the ingredients together with your fingertips, until form crumbs. Add two yolks and a pinch of salt and work the dough until comes together – if it is necessary add one or two spoons of cold water - then shape it in a ball and press gently to form a flattish disk. Set aside in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. 

Apple mousse

    • 5 medium apples

    • Two tablespoons caster sugar

    • Juice from half lemon

Peel and core the apples, cut in small pieces. Put in a shallow pan with the sugar and the lemon juice, cook it for about 15 minutes, until are tender. Pour them in a mixer bowl and mix for few seconds until you have a smooth mousse.  

Apple custard

    • Apple mousse (300gr)

    • Two yolks

    • 60gr caster sugar

    • 20gr corn starch

    • Lemon peel

Put a bowl in the freezer. Pour the apple mousse and the lemon peel in a small sauce pan, bring to hot temperature. In the meantime, gently whisk the yolks with the sugar and the corn starch. Take out the lemon peel from the pan and add in two times the hot apple sauce into the yolks mixture. Once combine put the sauce in the pan and cook it slowly for about ten minutes, continuously whisking, until the cream is soft, smooth and bit thick. Take out from the freezer the bowl and pour the custard into it, whisk vigorously to low the temperature for one minute, in order to not overcook the yolks. Cover with cling film and set aside until is lukewarm.

For the decoration

    • Two medium apples

    • One spoon of caster sugar

    • Lemon juice

    • One spoon of almond scallions 

      

Peel and core the apples, cut in slices. Put in a shallow pan with the sugar and the lemon juice, cook it for about 10 minutes, until there is no more apple juice in the bottom of the pan and the apples are tender but not completely overcooked. Set aside.

To assemble. Heat the oven to 200°C. Butter the sides and the bottom of the tin tart, then cover the bottom with a small disk of parchment paper. Take the shortcrust pastry from the fridge, dust with flour and roll out between two sheets of parchment paper. The pastry should be not more than 2-3mm thin. Lift the pastry on the rolling pin and place it over your tin. Press it into the sides, cutting out the excess. Fill the pastry with the apples custard, cover with the sliced apples and sprinkle with almond scallions. Use the rest of the shortcrust for the decoration, if you like. Bake it for about 40-50 minutes until crisp and golden.

Serve it completely cool, or even better wait for the day after.