NY Times: Original Maxwells Plum Apple Tarte Tatin Recipe from 1970

Perfect for the holiday season, check out this original recipe from the iconic Maxwell's Plum in New York, first featured in The New York Times back in 1970.

“Mrs. LeRoy said this week that she had researched all the cookbooks at her disposal and had made 500 tarts before she developed the one perfect tarte Tatin. This is her formula”

KAY LEROY'S TARTE TATIN

14 tablespoons sweet butter

⅔ cup white granulated sugar

7 tablespoons dark brown sugar

6 large red delicious apples

1 recipe for short crust pastry (recipe follows)

1 tablespoon water Sweetened whipped cream.

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

2. The ideal dish for making this tart is a metal dish 10 inches in diameter and about 2 inches deep.

3. In the dish, place 12 tablespoons of the butter, one–third cup of the white sugar and half the dark brown sugar. Blend thoroughly with the fingers and pat this mixture around the sides and bottom of the dish.

4. Peel and core the apples and slice them one ‐ eighth to one ‐ quarter ‐ inch thick. Arrange them in an overlapping, symmetrical petal‐like fashion over the butter and sugar base. When finished; the apples should come just to the rim of the dish and no higher.

5. Melt the remaining two table spoons of butter and add the remaining dark brown sugar. Stir this and sprinkle it over the apples.

6. Roll out the pastry into a circle one–eighth‐inch thick and cut it to fit as precisely as possible over the apples. Fit the pastry over the apples, making sure it does not overlap the rim of the dish. Cut a small slit in the center of the pastry to allow the steam to escape.

7. Bake the tart for 30 minutes or until the pastry is lightly browned.

8. Remove the dish from the oven and increase the oven heat to 550 degrees. Make a round of foil to fit over the dish to prevent the pastry from burning. Bake covered for 45 minutes to one hour until the liquid that forms around the apples has changed from a runny yellow to a dark oozing sticky amber, This can be done by carefully tilting the pan and looking under the crust. Note that oven thermostats, in homes vary and it may be necessary to adjust the oven heat if the tart starts to burn. On the other hand, the oven must be hot enough to caramelize the filling.

9. When the tart is done, place a serv ing plate over the top of the dish, then quickly invert the tart. The apples should be dark and caramelized.

10. Melt the remaining sugar and the water in a thick‐bottomed saucepan. When the sugar has melted and is dark amber, remove it from the heat. Work as quickly as you can, and use a pastry brush to paint a thin layer of caramel over the surface of the apples. Let cool. Serve warm with sweetened whipped cream.

Yield: Six to eight servings.

PASTRY FOR TARTE TATIN

2 cups all‐purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons very, cold shortening

5 to 7 tablespoons ice‐cold water.

METHOD

1. Sift the flour and salt twice into a chilled bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles crumbs.

2. Sprinkle in the water, tossing the pastry with a two‐pronged fork. Add only as much water as is necessary to hold the pastry together.

3. Do not knead, but gather the mix ture into a ball, pressing lightly. Place the ball on a lightly floured board and roll it out to an eighth‐inch thickness.

Yield: Pastry for one 10‐inch crust.