Imagine having a dessert named after you? If that’s not food goals we don’t know what is. The Tarte Tatin was created accidentally by two sisters, Stéphanie and Caroline Tatin, at a hotel they ran in the South of France. It quickly became their signature dessert and has spread to many other countries over the years. It is a simple and humble dessert made from the most basic kitchen ingredients. Just Imagine biting into warm deeply caramelized fruit and crispy puff pastry dripping with caramel. So delicious!
What we love the most about this dessert is its versatility. Although it was traditionally made with apples, it is now made with so many different fruits. The choice is yours, experiment with the flavors you and your family enjoy. Today we will show you how to make a pineapple Tarte Tatin. Everything we have learned about Tarte Tatin and pies has come from the brilliant chef Erin McDowell. We highly encourage you to purchase her book ” The Book On Pie”. She is the end all be all of Pie and tart baking and we have learned so much from her!
WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO MAKE PINEAPPLE TARTE TATIN
HOW TO MAKE TARTE TATIN
A few things to keep in mind, this dish starts cooking on the stovetop then finishes in the oven. So you will need to use an oven-safe pan, we used our favorite cast iron skillet. You can adjust this recipe to any sized pan you have, you will just need to make sure to cut down the puff pastry accordingly (more on this later). The ingredients in this recipe are perfect for a 33 cm \12 inch diameter pan, which will serve about 6-7 people.
Fruit Options:
Traditionally Tarth Tatin is made with apples which is absolutely fantastic and super delicious, but why should we limit ourselves to just apples when there are so many other fruits that this recipe works well with. Be creative, here are some variations to get you started :
- Bananas
- Peches
- Banana
- Pears
- Strawberries
- Figs
Whatever fruit you use, make sure they are washed and dried properly before adding them to the caramel. Be generous with the amount of fruit you use and make sure to pack it tightly as the fruit will shrink as it cooks.
PREPARE THE PUFF PASTRY
We used store-bought puff pastry found in the freezer section of most supermarkets. Allow your puff pastry to thaw in the fridge or on a countertop before using.
First line a baking sheet with parchment paper, this will be used to keep your rolled pastry safe from sticking while you prepare the rest of the tarte.
Before rolling out your puff pastry make sure to preheat your oven to 205°C (425°F). Lightly dust a clean work surface with some flour. Using a floured rolling pin roll your thawed puff pastry to 1 cm thickness and cut into a circle with a diameter 1 cm bigger than the oven-safe pan you are using for the recipe (Our cast iron pan had a 30cm diameter so we made a round of puff pastry with a diameter of 31cm). The size of our puff pastry was a bit small so we ended up using two sheets. Just make sure to overlap the sheets by about 2 cm then press the overlapping seem down well to attach them securely and proceed to roll to a 1 cm thickness. Then using a fork poke the dough all around creating holes allowing the steam to escape when baking in the oven later.
Place your rolled and shaped puff pastry onto the prepared baking sheet, and keep in the fridge until needed.
TARTE TATIN FILLING
Split your vanilla pod (if using) down the middle and scrape the seeds out. Add the vanilla seeds to your sugar and proceed to rub them together until well incorporated. Add the cinnamon and salt to the sugar and give it one last mix.
Prepare the fruits you are using. Slice the pineapple into 2cm thick slices, then cut them into halves and set aside.
Over medium-high heat, melt the butter in an oven-proof skillet or pan (we used a cast iron pan). Once the butter is melted, sprinkle your sugar mixture evenly onto the bottom of the pan and let it sit uninterrupted for 15 to 30 seconds to heat through.
Begin to stir to help encourage the sugar to dissolve, once the sugar has dissolved allow the mixture to cook (without stirring) for 4-5 minutes until the mixture begins to caramelize. You may swirl the skillet every now and then to ensure the mixture is cooking evenly.
When the mixture has caramelized to a nice deep golden brown give it one last swirl to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. Take off the heat and immediately arrange the fruit tightly together into an even layer. Cut smaller pieces of pineapple to fill any smaller empty areas.
ASSEMBLY
Remove your chilled puff pastry from the fridge and gently place it over your fruit. You will notice you have some extra dough on the edges, gently tuck the dough deep down around the fruit as best you can.
Bake in the preheated oven until the puff pastry turns a nice golden brown, around 25-30 minutes, Remove the skillet from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes.
Carefully flip the Tarte Tatin onto your preferred serving dish. Serve warm with scoops of vanilla ice cream. ENJOY!
Pineapple (or other fruits) Tarte Tatin
Ingredients
- 2 large sheets Frozen Puff Pastry
- 43 grams butter 3 tbsp
- 1 pod vanilla bean scraped
- 100 grams sugar ½ cup
- 800-1000 grams a whole pineapple (cut into 2cm slices) sliced and halved
- pinch cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 205°C (425°F).
FOR THE PUFF PASTRY
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly dust a clean work surface with some flour. Using a floured rolling pin roll your thawed puff pastry to 1 cm thickness and cut into a circle with a diameter 1 cm bigger than the oven-safe pan you are using for the recipe (Our cast iron pan had a 30cm diameter so we made a a round of puff pastry with a diameter of 31cm). The size of our puff pastry was a bit small so we ended up using two sheets. Just make sure to overlap the sheets by about 2 cm then press the overlapping seem down well to attach them securely and proceed to roll to a 1 cm thickness. Then using a fork poke the dough all around creating holes allowing the steam to escape when baking in the oven later. (refer to images in the blog)
- Place your rolled and shaped puff pastry onto the prepared baking sheet, and keep in the fridge until needed.
FOR THE TARTE TATIN FILLING
- Split your vanilla pod (if using) down the middle and scrape the seeds out. Add the vanilla seeds to your sugar and proceed to rub them together until well incorporated. Add the cinnamon and salt to the sugar and give it one last mix.
- Prepare the fruits you are using. Slice the pineapple into 2cm thick slices, then cut them into halves and set aside.
- Over medium-high heat, melt the butter in an oven-proof skillet or pan (we used a cast iron).
- Once the butter is melted, sprinkle your sugar mixture evenly onto the bottom of the pan and let it sit uninterrupted for 15 to 30 seconds to heat through.
- Begin to stir to help encourage the sugar to dissolve, once the sugar has dissolved allow the mixture to cook (without stirring) for 4-5 minutes until the mixture begins to caramelize. You may swirl the skillet every now and then to ensure the mixture is cooking evenly.
- When the mixture has caramelized to a nice deep golden brown give it one last swirl to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. Take off the heat and immediately arrange the fruit tightly together into an even layer. Cut smaller pieces of pineapple to fill any smaller empty areas.
- Immediately arrange the fruit into an even layer. Make sure to cover all spaces and arrange the fruits tightly and those will shrink while baking
ASSEMBLY
- Remove your chilled puff pastry from the fridge and gently place it over your fruit. You will notice you have some extra dough on the edges, gently tuck the dough deep down around the fruit as best you can.
- Bake in the preheated oven until the puff pastry turns a nice golden brown, around 25-30 minutes, Remove the skillet from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes.
- Carefully flip the Tarte Tatin onto your preferred serving dish. Serve warm with scoops of vanilla ice cream. ENJOY!
