Tarte Tatin is a lovely, fancy-looking dessert that actually isn’t that hard to make. I mean, if you read about the history of this French dessert, it was made by accident, which makes me confident you foodie readers can pull it off.
The story goes as follows: in the 1890s, two sisters, Stéphanie et Caroline Tatin, were managing a family hotel in Sologne, about 200 kms away from Paris. One day, Stephanie put the sugar and the fruit (apples) and forgot to put the crust before popping it in the oven. When she realized her mistake, she threw it on halfway through the baking process and then just flipped it over when it was ready.
Later, the owner of the upscale Parisian restaurant (Maxim’s) discovered it and liked it so much he got one of his pastry chefs to get the recipe and serve it to his customers. And the rest is history.
While flipping it over can seem daunting, you’ll see, it is easier than it sounds and so satisfying when you see it. While the sisters used apples for their recipe, many fall fruits can be substituted. Figs – like here – pears, plums, etc.
Serve with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream for extra indulgence.
Ingredients
- 1 batch of no-food processor pie crust dough, chilled
- 12-20 figs* depending on the size, sliced in halves with the ends cut off if they are tough
- 100 g caster/fine granulated sugar
- 40 g butter, cut into small cubes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 175 C
- Roll out the pie crust and reserve it in the fridge until ready to use
- Prepare the caramel: Place the butter in a small saucepan and pour the sugar of it. Combine it gently and let it cook on low heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until you see it melt and turn into a brown caramel color.
- Pour the caramel evenly on the pie plate
- Add the figs, skin side up and arrange tightly – fruit always tends to shrink as it cooks so don’t hesitate to put more if you see there is space between them
- Place the pie crust over the figs and tuck in the sides
- Bake in oven for 40-45 minutes. The fruit and its juices should be bubbling but not super liquid and the crust should be lightly golden and cooked.
- Let cool in the oven before you flip it. The tart should be lukewarm/warm. Place a big plate on top of the pie plate and using hands, hold each side of the plate and pie plate tightly. Flip the pie over swiftly and gently take off the pie plate. Voila!
