how much should i cut the sugar in a tart

Question

sugar adds moisture along w its sweet taste. i have a request to make an apple tart for someone. recipe calls for cooking 60g butter in 90g sugar for 2 mins. after it bubbles. then i add diced apples and cook till soft. there's a custard poured over that uses 2 T sugar. and there's sugar in the tart dough.

i believe reducing sugar is more problematic w a cake cuz of the moisture issue. and i think reducing by 1/3 is ok but no more. in the case of this tart, i think i can reduce the sugar in the carmelization to 60 or 70 from 90 and i can cut 1 T from the custard and maybe 1.5 T or 2 T. maybe i should only cut 10g from the carmelization process. the good news is, i can always just see how the caramelization goes w less sugar and if i don't like it, i can redo it w/o having to redo the whole tart. there are walnuts on top and the top is brushed w apricot glaze. maybe i can also go light on the glaze. appreciate any input. Tx

702551 · Answer

I find most American dessert recipes too sweet so I often cut sugar by 25%. Cutting more than 1/3 might cause problems especially here since you are using one of the tartest apples commonly available.

You can always skip the apricot glaze on the walnuts or dilute the glaze with water so you can apply a thinner coat (just like paint).

alan · Answer

i use granny smith so not sweet apples.  cutting half the sugar, going easy on the glaze and cutting back on the custard might b the answer.  the good thing is i can get a preview of the diced apples and the custard b4 things are baked and the client is very appreciative i'm willing to accommodate her,

drbabs · Answer

I definitely think you could curt the sugar for caramelizing the apples in half without even noticing the difference, especially if your apples are on the sweet side.  2 Tb of sugar for the custard doesn’t seem like a lot to me, but I don’t know how much custard the recipe makes. I wouldn’t cut more than 1/3. A lot of tart doughs don’t have sugar, so you’re probably safe cutting it back or even out there. I think you could go light on the glaze, too. You can always add more if you’re not happy with the way it looks. Good luck.

how much should i cut the sugar in a tart

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