Saturday, March 31, 2012

Vegan French Apple Tarte will Tantalize your Tastebuds

French food sans animal products doesn't exist, right? I mean, the base of any good French dish is usually butter, or cheese, or milk/cream...so when March 14th (3/14) rolled around a few weeks ago, I set out to celebrate Pi Day by making (what else??) a PIE. I wasn't so certain I was going to be able to stick to my vegan-for-Lent diet that day. Luckily, I was proven wrong. Not only was this one of the most beautiful French Apple Tartes I've ever made, it was also the most delicious--and completely dairy-free. The crust itself was simply DIVINE, but the filling and beautiful concentric circles of caramelized apples on top put this pie at the top of my list to make again.


Vegan French Apple Tarte


Is this not the most beautiful thing you've ever seen?!


Ingredients:

For the crust (based on this recipe)

1 1/2 C flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 T sugar
1/2 C oil
2 T non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients. Pat into pie plate (I used a removable-bottom tarte pan). Prick with a fork and par-bake in a 400 degree F oven for 10 minutes.

(PSST: this is the most fabulously easy and divinely delicious pie/tarte crust recipe I think you will EVER come across. Keep it handy!!)


For the filling (loosely based on this recipe)

6 large apples, cored and sliced (peeling is optional)
4 large apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (reserve for the top)
1/2 C raisins (optional)
3/4 C maple syrup
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 T cornstarch
1/2 C water (or apple or orange juice)

In a skillet, cook apples with raisins, syrup, lemon juice, and cinnamon until apples start to release their juices. In a small bowl, dissolve cornstarch into water/juice. Once apples are starting to turn soft, add cornstarch slurry. Continue to cook until the mixture is very thick, but not globby. If it is to runny, continue to cook to evaporate more water. If mixture is extremely thick, thin it out with a little water or juice. Once mixture is to desired consistency and apples are almost completely cooked, remove from stove. With a potato masher, mash the mixture until it turns into a thick chunky apple sauce. Cool the filling until it is room temperature.

Once filling is cooled, pour into par-baked pie crust and smooth out the top. Take thinly sliced apples and arrange in concentric circles on top of filling. Brush apples with non-dairy milk and sprinkle liberally with granulated sugar (or thin out a bit of apricot jam and glaze the apples with that). Bake in oven at 400 degrees F for 30-40 minutes, until crust is light brown and apples are caramelized. If after 40 minutes the apples on the top aren't caramelized sufficiently, turn on the broiler for a few minutes (be careful--they will burn easily!)

Once baked, cool to room temperature. Serve with (soy) ice cream on the side and enjoy a delicious Pi Day treat!


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