insideKENT Magazine Issue 23 - February 2014 | Page 65

RECIPE

HOT
w i t h

APPLE
V a n i l l a

TART

I c e

C r e a m

recipe from At Home by Michael Caines, published by Preface, out now in hardback priced £25.
“When I was living and working in France I fell in love with chausson aux pommes (puff pastry filled with a buttery
apple compote with hints of vanilla), which was eaten at breakfast. This, and the classic apple tarts I would admire
in French pastry shops, combine to make this inspired apple tart using the king of English apples, Cox’s.”

© David Griffin

middle of the tart. Do this evenly, as it helps with
the cooking time.
Scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod and
mix them with 150g of softened unsalted butter.
Using a pastry brush, brush with vanilla butter
over the tarts and then sprinkle lightly with sugar.
Place in the oven for 10 minutes, then
remove, brush with the vanilla butter again and
put back into the oven for a further 8-10 minutes.
Remove from the oven, brush again with the
vanilla butter and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
Serve with vanilla ice cream or clotted cream.

Serves 4
Apple Tart
Ingredients:
• 250g puff pastry
• 8 Cox’s apples
• Apple compote (recipe below)
• 2 vanilla pods
• 250g unsalted butter
• 4 Tbsp caster sugar
• Vanilla ice cream (recipe below)
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6, then roll
out your puff pastry. Be careful when doing this,
as it has a high fat content that makes it difficult
to work with if it is too warm. I recommend that
if you buy frozen pastry, defrost it overnight in
the fridge before using. Roll out the pastry
approximately 3mm thick, then, using a 12cm
cutter or by cutting around a plate, cut out 4
circles. Place directly onto the baking tray and
leave to rest for 10 minutes in the fridge.
Using a peeler, peel the apples and cut
them in half from top to bottom. Remove the
cores, then slice the apples thinly.
Remove the pastry from the fridge and prick
the surface using a fork. Place some apple
compote in the middle, then fan the apples around
the tart base, finishing with some slices in the

Apple Compote
Ingredients:
• 50g unsalted butter
• 400g Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and
chopped
• 50g caster sugar
• 1/2 a vanilla pod

Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients:
• 5 egg yolks
• 75g caster sugar
• 500ml milk
• 25g milk powder
• 100ml whipping cream
• 2 vanilla pods, split and seeds scraped out
Cream together the egg yolks and sugar until
white and stiff. Put the milk, milk powder, cream
and split vanilla pods and seeds into a saucepan
and bring to the boil. Pour some of the milk onto
the creamed eggs and sugar, whisking
continuously, then return the mixture to the
saucepan over a medium heat and heat to 85ºC.
Strain through a sieve, put the vanilla pods back
into the mixture, and cool. Pour into an ice cream
machine and churn.

Melt the butter in a stainless steel saucepan and
add the apples and sugar. Scrape out the seeds
from the vanilla pod and add the seeds and pod
to the apples. Cook for approximately 30 minutes
on a moderate heat, stirring from time to time,
until you achieve a thick texture.
Remove the vanilla pod, and place the
apples in a blender. Blend to a fine purée, then
pass through a fine sieve.

MICHAEL CAINES, MBE, is a truly original British chef, who has created innovative and original dishes
which have earned him two Michelin stars and numerous awards and accolades, including ‘the UK’s best
all round restaurant’ (Hardens) and ‘perfect in every way’ (Sunday Times). Michael Caines At Home is his first
book which contains nearly 100 exciting, delicious recipes suitable for cooking in domestic kitchens, distilled
from a lifetime of passionate cooking.

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