This Mother’s Day, why not give Mom a bunch of edible roses with this Caramel Apple Rose Tart? Delicate apple slices are rolled into blooming roses resting on a bed of luscious caramel pastry cream encased by a buttery tart shell. The combination of textures and flavours are sure to make Mom sing. Using basic pantry ingredients and apples, this homemade treat turns the classic apple tart into a work of art!

 

Ingredients:

(Makes 1 x 9″ tart)

Tart shell:

240g plain flour

60g ground almonds

200g unsalted butter, cubed

100g caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

1. Place flour, ground almonds, butter cubes and sugar in a food processor and process until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs
2. Drizzle the egg in while the food processor is working and stop once a dough is formed
3. Knead the dough slightly until it is smooth and then clingwrap it and chill for at least 2 hours or until it is firm
4. Preheat the oven to 170^oC/340^oF
5. Roll out the tart dough until it is 3 millimeters thick, then line the tart pan with the dough, trimming off the excess dough
6. Line the tart shell with parchment paper and baking beans.
7. Blind bake the tart shell for 20 minutes, then remove the parchment and baking beans and bake for another 10 minutes until it is golden brown

Caramel pastry cream:

60g caster sugar

30ml water

240ml milk

½ tsp salt

3 egg yolks

30g caster sugar

15g corn starch, sifted

1. Place 60g of sugar and 30ml of water in a clean saucepan and bring the mixture to boil until it turns light amber in colour
2. Pour the milk in a bit at a time at first, whisking quickly to combine until all the milk is added into the caramel. Add salt and bring the caramel milk back to a simmer
3. While waiting for the caramel milk to simmer, whisk egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch together in a mixing bowl until smooth
4. When caramel milk starts bubbling, remove from pot and add in a little of the hot milk to the egg yolk mixture while whisking quickly. Then continue whisking as you slowly add in the rest of the milk
5. Return the caramel custard mixture back into the same saucepan and keep stirring with a whisk over low heat.
6. When the mixture thickens and starts to bubble, remove from the heat and pour custard out into a clean bowl
7. Clingwrap over the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming and place the bowl in an ice-bath to cool down quickly. Chill until firm.
8. To serve, spoon caramel custard into the cooled tart shell before assembling the apples

Apple Filling:

4-6 red apples, cored and thinly sliced

100g sugar

50ml lemon juice

60g unsalted butter, melted

1. In a dish, combine sugar, lemon juice and butter.
2. Slice apples thinly with a mandolin and immediately toss into the mixture
3. Microwave for 30-40 seconds to soften apples, until apples can be rolled without breaking
4. Roll one slice of apple tightly to form the center of a rose, then add more slices around it to form a rose
5. Place it into the tart shell with caramel custard.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 with apple roses of different sizes until the tart is filled
7. Serve immediately and enjoy!