Apple and Caramelized Walnut Pie en croûte

One of the treats that cannot be missing from any homemade sweets recipe book is the apple tart. Whether in its most classic version with puff pastry base or baked upside down with the illustrious Tatin surname, any preparation that combines a crunchy pastry with apples is a guaranteed success. And that is precisely what you will achieve with this apple and caramelized pecan tart en croûte.

Tarts en croûte or in crust are characterized by being wrapped in a crunchy pastry that acts as a crust (croûte). This typical French preparation dates back a few centuries and was mainly used in savory recipes as a way to preserve meat, since the dough acted as a protective wrapping.

In this apple and caramelized pecan tart en croûte, a sweet shortcrust dough masterfully wraps a filling made of layers of caramelized apples and pecans, covered by the caramel from the apples' cooking. Pure fantasy!

And an important detail. If you want a great result, be sure to choose the right apple variety. You will need firm, sweet pieces that withstand the cooking process well. So, if you can, choose Golden, Reineta or Granny Smith.

The recipe for this delicious apple and caramelized pecan tart en croûte is courtesy of Fabien Pairon, Meilleur Ouvrier de France in 2011. The French brand designed and created the Geoforme perforated rectangular mold in collaboration with Fabien Pairon.

Ingredients

For the sweet shortcrust dough

• 500 g flour
• 250 g butter at room temperature, cut into small cubes
• 110 g whole milk
• 60 g icing sugar
• 4 g salt
• 90 g eggs

For the caramelized apple and pecan filling

• 3 kg apples
• 150 g sugar
• 120 g butter
• 90 g lemon juice
• 200 g pecans

Preparation

For the sweet shortcrust dough

1. In a bowl mix the flour with the butter until the texture resembles sand. You can do it by hand, with your fingertips, or in the KitchenAid mixer with the paddle at medium speed.
2. Dissolve the salt and sugar in the whole milk.
3. Add the milk and eggs and mix just enough to obtain a homogeneous dough.
4. Remove the dough from the bowl, shape it into a ball and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
5. When the time has passed, take the dough out of the refrigerator and roll it out with a rolling pin into a rectangle to line the perforated removable mold.
6. Place the mold lined with the dough in the refrigerator until the dough firms up again.
7. Take the mold out of the refrigerator. Before baking, place a sheet of parchment paper covering the dough and fill the mold with baking weights so the dough keeps its shape (you can use dried chickpeas, or the KitchenCraft ceramic baking balls). Bake for 40 minutes at 140 °C.
8. After 40 minutes, cover the mold with aluminum foil and continue baking for another 20 minutes.
9. Remove the mold from the oven and let it cool before filling.

For the caramelized apple and pecan filling

1. Toast the pecans on a tray in the oven for 20 minutes at 140 °C. Wait for them to cool and chop them into large pieces.
2. Peel the apples, core them and cut them into 6 pieces.
3. In a large skillet put the butter, sugar and lemon juice to make the caramel.
4. When the caramel ingredients are integrated and you see the mixture beginning to brown, add the apples and cook without stirring much for about 10 minutes. Do it in two or three batches if all the apples don't fit in the pan, because if you put them all at once they could crumble.
5. Put all the apple slices back into the skillet and bring the skillet to the oven to continue cooking for another 20 minutes at 180 °C.

Assembly

1. Let the apples and the mold with the dough warm up slightly before you start placing the filling.
2. Place a first layer of still-warm caramelized apples in the mold and sprinkle the pecans.
3. Repeat the process until you have 4 layers of apples, pressing between each layer. If you wish, you can reserve some pecan pieces for the final decoration.

Finishing

1. Hydrate 3 g of gelatin sheets in very cold water.
2. Heat 300 g of the caramel from the apples' cooking.
3. Drain the gelatin well and add it to the caramel, stirring well to dissolve and fully integrate it.
4. Pour the caramel with the gelatin over the last layer of caramelized apple filling.
5. Place some pecan pieces (if you reserved them).
6. Place the mold in the refrigerator and let cool for a minimum of 8 hours before unmolding and tasting. You can serve it with a spoonful of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Notes

• If you want to give an extra flavor boost to this magnificent mix of tastes, you can flavor both the dough and the filling with ground cinnamon or a little vanilla by adding them along with the other ingredients when preparing the sweet dough and the apple filling.
• The resting time in the refrigerator is necessary both to settle the flavors and to give it the necessary body so it doesn't crumble when cut.
• For this type of en croûte preparations, the Geoforme perforated mold by De Buyer is perfect, because in addition to allowing even baking of the dough, with just moving its 4 hinges it fully unfolds to easily remove the tart from its interior.