My first taste of a French applesauce tart was in a convent in Jerusalem many years ago. When I was visiting Biarritz recently in late autumn, I was delighted to taste it again, at the home of Nicole Rousso. She learned how to make the tart from her grandmother, who came from the Vosges Mountains. Nicole has a penchant for bio and healthy products, and uses fresh grapes as a sweetener in the applesauce. I love her elegant French touch of thinly slicing an apple and arranging it on top of the applesauce before baking.

　　

Ingredients

8 servings

　　1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed

　　1/2 teaspoon salt

　　1 tablespoon sugar

　　9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter or pareve margarine, cut into small cubes, plus more for greasing pan

　　2 cups thick applesauce (see preceding recipe)

　　1 Gala apple, peeled and thinly sliced

　　

Step 1

Put the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter or margarine little by little, and pulse until crumbly. Add 2 tablespoons ice water, and pulse until the dough comes together in a ball, adding a bit more flour if necessary. Remove the dough, shape it into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

　　

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and roll out the chilled dough to a circle about 10 inches in diameter. Press it evenly into a greased 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, bringing the dough up the sides almost to the top of the pan, and keeping an even thickness throughout. Prick the bottom and sides of the shell with the tines of a fork, and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until it is lightly browned. Remove from the oven, and let cool slightly.

　　

Step 3

Lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Spread the prepared applesauce in the pie crust, putting the sliced apple in a circular pattern on top. Return the pie to the oven, and bake for 30 minutes more.

　　Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous