Kitchen Diary

Tarte Tatin……the word conjures up cold nights and comforting food eaten around the fireside with a delicious glass of sweetish wine to accompany it. Tarte Tatin also conjures up visions of firm crisp apples and caramel and delicious puff pastry. So easy and simple to prepare and yet so delicious and comforting. ClemenGold also conjures up wintry thoughts as it is a winter citrus and only available for that season….but I turned both into a wonderful summery delight this past week.

The new year has firmly entrenched itself and 3 weeks have just flown past in a blur. Here in the Western Cape where I live we have been overwhelmed by a heatwave of massive proportions. I have not been able to bear spending any time in my kitchen during the days. Nights are oppressive and everyone is battling to sleep. I think airconditioning companies have been benefiting from it all. In the bowels of my freezer I came across a bag of ClemenGolds this past week that I had popped in there towards the end of the 2011 season. As I was contemplating them the idea of using some for a tarte tatin  came to mind. Using my favourite spices of course for my ClemenGold goodness. It ticked all the right boxes for me….quick and easy to prepare and delicious with a big scoop of icy cold vanilla ice cream! I was sold on the idea and this is what I came up with…

Serves 4-6

Easy to prepare

Ingredients:

1 roll good quality Butter Puff Pastry – thawed but still cold

2 ClemenGolds (or other clementine/mandarin if you cannot get the ClemenGolds)

125 g butter

100 g Light Brown Sugar

½ Lemon – juice only

5ml NoMU Sweet Rub

1 Vanilla Pod – split and seeds removed with the tip of a sharp knife

2 star anise

1 Egg – lightly beaten for brushing the pastry

Method:

Wash and slice the ClemenGolds thinly (leaving the delicious peel on) and set aside. I am so in love with my new Lassar ceramic knife that is perfect for this job 

Unroll the puff pastry and, using your skillet as a measure, cut out a circle  about an inch wider all round than the size of the skillet that you are using. Set aside in the fridge until needed

Place the skillet (it needs to have an oven proof handle) onto the hob over a low to moderate heat

Place the butter, sugar, sweet rub and lemon juice into the skillet and melt all together without stirring

Add the vanilla seeds and pod and star anise

Allow the mixture to caramelize and turn a medium golden colour giving it a bit of a shake every now and again.  Don’t allow it to go any darker than that as it can burn very easily

Remove the pan from the heat and place the ClemenGold slices in the caramel in circles, overlapping the slices slightly and placing the last one in the centre of the pan so the whole base is covered

Set aside to cool for 10 – 15 minutes

Preheat oven to 200C while the caramel is cooling

Remove puff pastry from the fridge and place it lightly over the top of the caramel in the skillet. Fold and tuck the extra bits down the sides carefully as the caramel might still be hot enough to burn your fingers

Brush lightly with the egg wash and bake on the middle shelf in the oven until the pastry is puffed up  and a deliciously medium golden brown colour

Remove from the oven then place a large flat serving plate over the top of the skillet

Using oven gloves or a couple of folded dish towels hold the plate and pan tightly together and in a quick motion flip them over and place plate down  on to the counter

Remove the pan – if any slices have remained behind gently lift with a spatula and place back into position

Allow to cool slightly then remove the star anise and vanilla pod and cut into wedges

Serve with whipped cream, crème frâiche or ice-cream (personally I prefer the iciness of ice cream with the still slightly hot tarte tatin!)

browniegirl tip: Wash the stickiness off the vanilla pod then let it dry thoroughly on your windowsill in the sunlight. Once dry pop it into a jar of sugar and cover tightly. In a week or two you will have delicious vanilla sugar for all your baking needs 

To interact with Lassar ceramic knives visit their facebook page or take a peek at the Essentials page in the latest Crush online magazine edition to see how to slice and dice an onion…the Lassar way!

Enjoy,

browniegirl xx