Cider infused caramelized apple tart with
grapefruit jam by Jacquy Pfeiffer
October 4, 2019
Cider
infused caramelized apple, hazelnut praline
Pastry Chef paste, hazelnut financier, hazelnut sablé
Jacquy Pfeiffer dough and pink grapefruit and grenadine jam
For Jacquy Pfeiffer, equilibrium is the most important parameter to consider when creating a new pastry item. The co-founder of The
French Pastry School is convinced that anyone can make pastry combining ingredients and components, but that it takes time and
work to find the right balance of flavors, textures, and simplicity.
The experienced pastry chef ensures that tomorrow’s customers are more informed and look for tasty, fresh, and healthy products
like this Cider Infused Caramelized Apple Tart with Grapefruit Jam, of which we detail the recipe below.
Cider infused caramelized apple
Yield two 9” tarts
7 u Braeburn apples
75 g butter 82% fat
100 g granulated sugar
1/2 u vanilla bean
35 gCalvados liquor (optional)
2 g fine sea salt
250 g organic fresh apple juice
250 g Organic apple cider
Make a caramel with the sugar on medium heat in a medium sauce pan using a high heat rubber spatula. Deglaze with the soft
butter. Add the apple juice in 3 additions. Add the salt, calvados and vanilla bean split in half. Peel, cut in half and core the apples.
Fill 10 ramequin dishes or disposable aluminum cupcake cups halfway with the cooking juice. Put a ½ apple in each cup and cover
with foil. Bake for 1 hour 40 minutes at 146°C/295°F and let cool for 30 minutes.Take the apples out of the cups and drain them on
the flat side on a wire rack for 12 hours in the refrigerator.
Hazelnut Praline Paste
100 g granulated sugar
65 g water
1/4 u vanilla bean
150 g whole skinned hazelnuts
The hazelnuts skins lend a bitter taste so it is better to remove it by toasting the hazelnuts in a 325◦F oven for 8 minutes. As they
come out of the oven, rub the nuts in a towel or over a sifter until most of the skins fall off. Keep the hazelnuts warm and cook the
sugar, vanilla and water to 115ºC/239ºF in a sauce pan. Remove the pan from the heat and add the warm nuts. Stir the nuts and
sugar syrup until the mixture begins to sand. The syrup will crystallize and look sandy. Place the pan back on medium heat and
continue cooking until the sugar melts and caramelizes evenly around the nuts. If your sugar starts to smoke, the heat is too high
and you will need to reduce it. Turn off the heat when the nuts are roasted in the center and the caramel is golden brown. Quickly
pour the nuts out onto a Silpat silicone mat and let them cool completely. Break them up in chunks and blend them in a food
processor until it turns into a paste. Reserve in an airtight container in a cool place.
Hazelnut Financier
132 g confectioners’ sugar
48 g skinless hazelnut powder
48 g cake flour
1 g baking powder
72 g butter 82% fat
132 g fresh egg whites
12 g hazelnut praline paste
1 g pink grapefruit zests
5 g hazelnut oil
2 g fine sea salt
1/2 u scraped vanilla beanr
12 g Honey
Sift the confectioners’ sugar, hazelnut powder, flour and baking powder. Cook the butter slowly in a small sauce pan while stirring
until it turn light brown. Mix the egg whites with the praline paste, pink grapefruit zest, hazelnut oil, sea salt, vanilla bean and honey.
Mix with the dry ingredients. Add the strained hot butter. Reserve in a mixing bowl covered with plastic wrap for 3 hours in the
refrigerator.
Note: the hazelnut powder can be substituted with almond powder.
Hazelnut Sablé Dough
120 g butter 82% fat
200 g cake flour
2 g sea salt
25 g hazelnut powder
75 g confectioners’ sugar
55 g fresh egg yolks
2 g vanilla extract
Mix the butter with the cake flour and salt in a stand mixer using a paddle attachment until it gets a sandy consistency. Add the
hazelnut powder and confectioner’s sugar. Gradually add the egg yolks and vanilla extract. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and
refrigerate for 3 hours.
Note: the hazelnut powder can be substituted with almond powder.
Pink Grapefruit and Grenadine Jam
250 g water
1 g fine sea salt
15 g pink grapefruit zest
20 g granulated sugar
3,75 g pectin
25 g pomegranate juice
140 g organic pink grapefruit segments
35 g sugar
Boil the water and salt in a medium sauce pan. Boil the zests in salted water for 2 minutes, and then rinse with cold water. Mix the
pectin with the 20grams of sugar. Heat the pomegranate juice and grapefruit segments at 40°C/104°F. Add the pectin/ sugar mix
and boil for 2 minutes. Add the remaining sugar and zest. Cook for about 2 minutes or until thick. Transfer to a bowl and cover with
plastic wrap, refrigerate until needed.
Note: This type of jam or a similar type of citrus can be purchased in a gourmet store should you need to.
Montage
40 g skinless hazelnut powder
40 g skinless crushed hazelnuts
Cut the dough in half and roll each piece to a 2mm/1/16” thickness. Line a 9” tart pan with each piece and dock the surface with a
fork. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Place a piece of parchment paper inside the tart and fill with pie weights.
Bake at 163°C/325°F for 25 minutes and let cool. Remove the parchment paper and pie weights and let cool. Spread 80g of the
grapefruit jam on the bottom of each pre-baked tart shell using a small offset spatula. Sprinkle 20g of roasted hazelnut powder on it.
Pipe 170g of the financier mix in each tart shell, and then spread evenly with a small offset spatula. Sprinkle 20g of roasted hazelnut
powder on it. Arrange 7 half cooked apples flat side down in each tart. Sprinkle 20g of crushed hazelnuts on each tart and dust
confectioners’ sugar on them. Bake at 163°C/325°F for 35 min, let cool on a wire rack and un-mold.
Note: The hazelnuts and hazelnut powder can be substituted with almonds.
