TOO EASY and TOO GOOD Apple and Berries Puff Pastry Tart

Christmas Eve is here and the question looming around today is what you should make for Christmas Eve Dinner with friends, or, more importantly, what you should make for dessert! Well, this easy recipe will take away this dessert dilemma super fast, in a super delicious and chic way that will have friends raving about your dessert to others for days to come. I love using puff pastry, which you can buy frozen at any grocery store, because it bakes easily and puffs up to a beautiful golden crust all on its own! It's basically the dough they make croissants out of, made of a mixture of flour and lots of butter (that's why it's so flaky!). I used a recipe from Ina Garten for the puff pastry apple tart, and then my friend and I improvised and put frozen berries on top of the second puff pastry layer that came in the box. We covered each fruit layer with 1/2 cup sugar and chunks of butter to caramelize. Looking back, however, I think the butter on top of the berries was probably not necessary, since they are already most and do not need the same caramelizing effect that the apples do. I will post Ina's recipe below, so go buy a frozen puff pastry, some apples (we used 2 for one puff pastry sheet), and get to work! It is hard to fail with this one ;). 

Instagram pictures below of apple and berry puff pastry tarts:

Apple Puff Pastry Tart
(Based on Ina Garten's Apple Puff Pastry Tart recipe)

Ingredients:
-1 box frozen puff pastry (should come with two sheets)
-2 Granny Smith apples, or 4 if you want to use both puff pastry sheets (to make a berry tart, use a bag of frozen mixed berries instead)
-1/2 cup sugar
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
-4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, small diced (butter not necessary for berry tart)
-1/2 cup apricot jelly or warm sieved apricot jam (this part is optional, I don't think it's really necessary)
-2 tablespoons Calvados rum or water
-walnuts for topping (optional)
-whipped cream for topping (not optional ;) )

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
• Open puff pastry box and let the puff pastry sheets thaw for 1 hour or 2. 
• Roll out puff pastry sheets onto baking sheet (you can put parchment paper under them if you want)
• Refrigerate or freeze puff pastry sheets while you prepare the apples
• Slice apples semi-thinly and layer them onto the puff pastry sheet, leaving an inch of space on each side of the puff pastry sheet (as Ina says, "Peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem. Remove the stems and cores with a sharp knife and a melon baler. Slice the apples crosswise in 1/4-inch thick slices. Place overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices.")
• Sprinkle cinnamon all over the apples
• Scatter 1/2 cup sugar over apples, and then scatter the tiny diced squares of butter over the apples. 
• Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown.Rotate the pan once during cooking.
• Optional: "When the tart's done, heat the apricot jelly together with the Calvados and brush the apples and the pastry completely with the jelly mixture. Loosen the tart with a metal spatula so it doesn't stick to the paper. Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature." (Ina Garten)
• Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

Kaori