Apple Tarte Tatin

Apples cooked down in dark caramel under a lid of puff pastry, baked, then flipped out of the pan. Serve it warm with cold crème fraîche.

Stand the apples on their edges and pack them tighter than looks possible. They shrink by about a third as they cook, and loose apples slump into applesauce when you flip it.

Ingredients

• 7 firm apples, Pink Lady or Honeycrisp, peeled, quartered, cored
• ¾ cup sugar
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter, cold, cubed
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 sheet all-butter puff pastry, thawed, kept cold
• ½ cup crème fraîche, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Peel, quarter and core the apples.
2. Spread the sugar in a 10-inch ovenproof skillet over medium. Let it melt without stirring, swirling the pan once it starts to color, until it is deep amber, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Off the heat, stir in the butter and salt. It will spit, so stand back. Stir until smooth.
4. Stand the apple quarters on their edges in tight rings, rounded side down, and wedge the last few into the center.
5. Set the pan over medium-low and cook until the apples start to soften and the juices cook down into a thick, bubbling caramel, about 15 minutes.
6. Roll the pastry into an 11-inch round and prick it all over with a fork. Drape it over the apples, tuck the edges down inside the pan, and cut 4 small slits on top.
7. Set the skillet on a sheet pan to catch drips. Bake until the pastry is puffed and deep golden, 35 to 40 minutes.
8. Rest 10 minutes, no longer, or the caramel sets and the apples stick. Run a knife around the edge, put a plate over the pan, and flip it in one move with oven mitts on. Put back any apples that stayed behind. Serve warm with crème fraîche.