Make Ahead

Seriously Simple Apple Tart with Hot Buttered Rum Raisin Sauce

December 12, 2011
3.7
3 Ratings
  • Makes one nine-inch tart
Author Notes

Our daughter's dear friend from college, Vickie, wrote to me to ask if I could suggest a recipe or two to use up apples that she had picked this fall at an orchard. After a little dance of joy around the kitchen, and with a dorm kitchen and limited supplies in mind, this is the recipe I baked up for her. The tart takes all of ten minutes to mix up and requires very little kitchen equipment or finesse. Four diced apples are tossed together in a single bowl with a handful of ingredients to bind them, and there’s no crust to fuss over. The fruit is the star here, so choose tart apples with great flavor. I made the boozy sauce a week later for my book group as an accompaniment. It’s forgiving, equally simple, and seriously delicious. If you’re not up to the tart, make the sauce. And smear it straight from the refrigerator on scones or French toast, or rewarm it gently to pour over ice cream. —ALittleZaftig

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Ingredients
  • Apple Tart
  • soft butter for the tart pan
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or substitute all purpose)
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • good pinches ground cloves (optional)
  • good pinches freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
  • good pinches salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon spiced or dark rum (or substitute vanilla extract)
  • 4 medium tart apples (such as Haralson) peeled, cored, and diced
  • Hot Buttered Rum Raisin Sauce
  • 1/4 cup spiced or dark rum
  • 1 cup golden or Hunza raisins (or substitute dark)
  • 1/2 cup salted butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream
Directions
  1. Apple Tart
  2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a pie plate or 9" tart pan (or substitute a cake pan). In a large bowl, stir together all of the ingredients except the apples. The batter will be rather unwieldy, but just give it a good stir until it all comes together. Add the apples and stir vigorously until the batter loosens and is distributed evenly. Pour the mixture into the pan and spread it out. Bake until golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes. While it bakes, make the hot buttered rum raisin sauce.
  1. Hot Buttered Rum Raisin Sauce
  2. In a large saucepan, combine all of the ingredients except the cream. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring, until the butter is melted and the sugar, dissolved. Light the sauce aflame in the pan so that the alcohol burns off, if desired. Cook, stirring, until the sauce begins to caramelize and darken a bit. Stir in the cream and warm through. If the sauce is a bit thicker than desired, stir in an additional ¼ c. of cream. Serve the sauce warm. It may be kept covered in the refrigerator and rewarmed gently. Add a bit of cream if it is a bit too thick.

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5 Reviews

Chef C. January 30, 2018
This dish is more like a crisp than a tart but it is very tasty, especial with the rum-raisin sauce. Next time I won’t use a tart pan with a removable base, a ceramic pie plate would work better.
ALittleZaftig December 13, 2011
Thank you, Antonia. Christmas Day? I feel some pressure now! I hope you like it.
AntoniaJames December 13, 2011
Love this! On my menu for Christmas Day. ;o) P.S. Lucky Vickie! Lucky us!! I hope you post more recipes like this.
ALittleZaftig December 12, 2011
Yes, I did. I've altered the ingredients list to reflect that. Thanks!
susan G. December 12, 2011
Sounds like a piece of cake! I bet they loved it. Did you peel the apples?