Apple Tart for Mothering Sunday

Living on the other side of the Atlantic from your mother can, at times, set you up for disaster.  Mothering Sunday, or Mother's Day as it's known in the US is one such example.  It falls on different days, this year in the UK it's today - in the US it's sometime in May.  I'm afraid I've "forgotten" too many times over the years as it's simply off my radar screen.  This year I was determind not too. 

If I lived down the road from my mum, this is what I'd make her for Mothering Sunday (I'm sure I'd throw in a roast chicken for good measure).  Even though my mum wasn't here to eat it, it didn't go to waste - my husband ate three quarters of it standing up at the counter and my eldest daughter polished off the rest on the way out of the door. 

It's not a difficult tart and the pastry need not be a fiddle!

Pastry;

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 egg yolk

4 oz unsalted COLD butter, cubed

1/2 cup iced water

Apple filling;

Peel, core and slice about 4-6 apples, depending on their size. I used small apples which I cut in half, cored and then sliced.

2 tablespoons brown suger

2 - 3 teaspoons cinnamon

Juice of half a lemon

1-2 tablespoons butter

For the glaze;

1/4 cup apricot preserves and 1 tablespoon water

To make the pastry, place the flour and salt into a food processor and "pulse" 10-15 times.

Add the butter down the funnel and pulse again until you are left with a mixture like large breadcrumbs.

Add the egg yolk and water and process until the mixture just comes together.

Dump the mixture out onto a couple of sheets of plastic wrap, wrap up and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to rest.

Meanwhile, prepare the apples.

Peel, core and half them, then slice them thinly.  Place in a bowl, toss with the lemon juice, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll the pastry out and line a 10 inch tart pan.  Arrange the apple slices in a pretty pattern, add as many as you can.  Dot with butter and place in the oven at 425F or 10 minutes.  Then turn down the temperature to 400F for a further 35-40 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the apples are cooked through.

Remove from the oven and make the glaze.  Place the apricot preserves and water into a small saucepan and heat until the preserves have melted.  Mix thoroughly, brush the glaze onto the tart with a pastry brush (I found I didn't actually have one and used my one of my daughter's large paint brushes!)

Stand back to avoid the stampede.

Happy Mothering Sunday.

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