This is the flakiest, easiest, best pie crust ever. Master chef Jacques Pépin has created a virtually fail-safe recipe that is completely hassle-free: You don’t even need to chill the dough before you roll it out. You can use almost any firm fruit in
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- Pinch of salt
- 170g cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, plus 2 tablespoons melted
- 1/3 cup ice water
- 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 large Golden Delicious apples—peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-cm-thick slices
- 2 tablespoons melted and strained apricot preserves
How to Make It
Step 1
In a food processor, pulse 1 1/2 cups of the flour with the salt. Add the cold butter and process just until the butter is the size of peas, about 5 seconds. Sprinkle the ice water over the mixture and process just until moistened, about 5 seconds. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead 2 or 3 times, just until it comes together. Pat the dough into a disk. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a +- 40cm round about 1/2 cm thick
Line a large unrimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it onto the prepared baking sheet.
Step 3
In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the sugar with the remaining 1 tablespoon of flour and sprinkle over the dough. Arrange the apple slices on top in overlapping concentric circles to within 7,5 cm of the edge. Fold the dough over the apples in a free-form fashion. Brush the apples with the melted butter and sprinkle with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar. Refrigerate the unbaked tart until slightly chilled, about 10 minutes.
Step 4
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Bake the tart in the center of the oven for 1 hour, or until the apples are tender and golden and the crust is deep golden and cooked through. Brush the apples with the melted preserves. Slide the parchment onto a wire rack and let the tart cool slightly before serving.
Original recipe by Food & Wine.