Pink Applesauce Meringue Tart With Hazelnut Cookie Crust Recipes

APPLE MERINGUE TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450*. Fit pie crust firmly into bottom and up side of a 9 inch tart pan with removable bottom. Bake until light golden, 9-11 minutes. Remove from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350*.
• Combine water, 2 tablespoons sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan; mix well. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture becomes clear, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat; set aside.
• Combine egg whites, cream of tartar and salt in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until frothy. Add remaining sugar gradually to egg whites; beating until soft peaks form and being careful not to let egg whites become dry, 2-3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium; gradually add cornstarch mixture, one spoonful at a time. Increase speed to high; beat until meringue is smooth and satiny, about 2 minutes.
• Spoon apple pie filling into baked crust. Spoon meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe meringue on top of pie filling. Bake until meringue is golden, 12-15 minutes. Cool tart completely on a wire rack. Loosen crust from side of pan; remove side. Cut into wedges to serve.

MEYER-LEMON AND HAZELNUT TART

Steps:

• Crust:Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pulse hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Add confectioners' sugar, cornstarch, and salt; pulse to combine. Add egg white and butter and process until dough comes together. Transfer 2/3 cup dough to the bottom of a 9-inch fluted tart pan. With an offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread and press in an even layer. Press remaining 1/3 cup dough firmly up sides of pan. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.
• Blind-bake crust: Remove from freezer and prick all over with the tines of a fork. Bake until golden brown and dry, 20 to 25 minutes (if browning too quickly, tent edges with foil). Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. The tart shell can be baked up to two days ahead; store at room temperature.
• Filling:Place 2 teaspoons cold water in a small bowl; sprinkle with gelatin. In a medium saucepan, whisk together granulated sugar, lemon zest and juice, yolks, and salt. Add butter, place pan over medium heat, and cook, whisking, until butter is melted. Continue to cook until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and small bubbles form around edge of pan, 5 minutes more. Remove from heat and whisk in gelatin mixture. Strain through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl, then pour into cooled crust. Refrigerate until filling has set, at least 2 hours.
• Meringue:Whisk together egg whites, granulated sugar, cream of tartar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Place over (but not in) a saucepan of simmering water. Cook, whisking frequently, until mixture is warm to the touch and no longer feels grainy when rubbed between two fingers. Transfer bowl to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla and beat 1 minute more. Transfer meringue to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (such as Ateco #808). Pipe large rounds around perimeter of tart. Brulee meringue with a kitchen torch, if desired. Serve.

PINK APPLESAUCE MERINGUE TART WITH HAZELNUT COOKIE CRUST

Steps:

• Make applesauce filling:
• Quarter and core apples (do not peel). In a 5-quart saucepan simmer apples, uncovered, with remaining filling ingredients 2 hours, or until mixture is reduced to about 3 3/4 cups. (Stir mixture frequently during last 30 minutes of cooking to prevent scorching.) Force mixture through a food mill fitted with coarse disk or a medium-mesh sieve into a bowl, discarding solids, and chill. Applesauce may be made up to 3 days ahead and chilled, covered.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Make cookie crust:
• In a food processor grind hazelnuts fine with sugar, flour, and salt. Add butter and pulse mixture well. Add yolk mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition, and pulse mixture until it forms a dough. Press dough onto bottom and up side of a 10-inch tart pan with a removable fluted rim. Bake crust in middle of oven 25 minutes, or until browned lightly, and cool in pan on a rack. Crust may be made 3 days ahead and kept, covered, in a cool dry place.
• Spread applesauce onto crust.
• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Make meringue:
• In a bowl with an electric mixer beat egg whites with a pinch salt until they hold soft peaks. Add sugar gradually, beating whites until they hold stiff peaks.
• Transfer meringue to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch star tip and pipe some in a lattice pattern over filling. Pipe remaining meringue onto edge of tart to make a decorative border.
• Bake tart in middle of oven 10 minutes, or until meringue is golden, and chill 30 minutes or up to 3 hours.
• To toast and skin hazelnuts:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• In a baking pan toast hazelnuts in one layer in oven 10 to 15 minutes, or until colored lightly, and skins blister. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam 1 minute. Rub nuts in towel to remove as much of skins as possible and cool.

PINK-APPLESAUCE TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a 1/8-inch thickness. Fit into a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Trim edge of dough flush with top of pan. Prick bottom of dough with a fork. Freeze 15 minutes. Line crust with parchment; fill with dried beans or pie weights.
• Bake until edges are set and golden, about 25 minutes. Carefully remove paper and beans. Bake until bottom is dry and golden, about 10 minutes more. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees.
• Meanwhile, combine sugar, butter, and salt in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon Calvados and simmer 30 seconds. Stir in applesauce.
• Spread applesauce mixture evenly in cooled tart shell. Core apples, then use a mandoline or a very sharp knife to slice into almost paper-thin rings. Arrange apples over applesauce mixture, overlapping slices in concentric circles from the center out, to completely cover tart. Bake until apples are crisp-tender, about 15 minutes.
• Combine jelly and remaining 1 tablespoon Calvados in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Brush glaze over apples. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Unmold and serve. Tart can be stored in refrigerator up to 1 day.