I know in my family, a few things beat a good apple crumble! It's always top of the list when it comes to dessert requests, and this recipe for Apple Crumble Tarts with caramel sauce ticks all the boxes.
These mini Apple Crumble Tarts are made from a delicious crumble pastry that is used to line the base of the tins and used for the buttery crumble topping. The apple filling has a delicious spiced flavor from the ground cinnamon and cloves.
If you love apple crumble recipes, then have a look at this recipe for an Apple and Blackberry Crumble, this Apple and Strawberry Crumble, or this recipe for an Apple Crumble Tart.
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Ingredients
To make this tart recipe, you will need the ingredients listed below. Remember to always use fresh room temperature ingredients when baking.
- Unsalted butter
- Superfine sugar
- Extra large eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
- Cake flour
- Granny Smith apples
- Ground cloves
- Ground cinnamon
- Lemon juice
- Cornflour
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated white sugar
- Heavy cream
Unsalted butter - you will need butter for the pastry, apple filling, and caramel sauce. Choose to use unsalted butter rather than salted and adjust the saltiness separately.
Extra-large eggs - out of their shell, the eggs I use weigh 56 grams, if you aren't sure if you have the same eggs - weigh the eggs you have and adjust accordingly.
Green apples - I don't really like red apples! So, I always use green tart apples when baking. For this recipe, I used Granny Smiths and they worked wonderfully. Other types of apples you can try are Pink Lady apples or Honey Crisp. You want to choose a firm flesh apple that will hold its shape during cooking and baking. I recommend using fresh apples not tinned apples.
Light brown sugar - I often play around with the type of sugar I use for the filling, so feel free to do the same. Choose between light brown or dark brown sugar, and even muscovado works well.
Heavy cream - Heavy cream refers to creams that have a fat content higher than 36%, in South Africa, these creams are often called whipping cream. Please don't make the mistake of confusing this with double thick cream, it isn't the same!
Vanilla extract - For this recipe use a quality vanilla extract, if you can't find any, vanilla essence will also work.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for Apple Crumble Tarts
To make these mini tarts, follow the simple instructions below. First, you will be making the pastry, then the caramel sauce, and then the apple pie filling.
Instructions for pastry
STEP 1: Cream butter and sugar. Add the butter and sugar to a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is well combined and homogenous.
STEP 2: Add the eggs and vanilla. First, add the whole egg to the creamed mixture with the food processor running, and pulse until combined. Then add the egg yolk and vanilla and pulse again.
STEP 3: Add the dry ingredients. Sift together the flour and salt and add this flour mixture to the egg and butter mixture all at once. Pulse until a dough forms, do not overmix.
STEP 4: Chill dough. Remove the dough from the bowl, cover it in a sheet of plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour.
STEP 5: Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F) and brush 8 mini tart tins with melted butter.
STEP 6: Roll dough. Remove the chilled dough from the fridge and roll it out on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of ½ cm ( ¼ inch) using a rolling pin.
STEP 7: Prepare tart shells. Cut discs of the rolled pastry slightly larger than the tart tins, place these pastry discs into the buttered tart tins, and use your fingertips to gently press the pastry into the base of the tin and up the sides of the tins.
STEP 8: Blind bake the shells. Line each pastry tin with parchment paper and fill this with uncooked rice or pie weights. Place the tins onto a cookie sheet pan and blind bake the shells in a preheated oven for 15 minutes until light golden brown. Set aside.
Instructions for salted caramel
STEP 1: Melt sugar. Add the sugar to a medium-sized saucepan set over medium heat.
STEP 2: Allow the sugar to turn amber. Whisk continuously until the sugar has melted. Once melted, stop whisking and allow the sugar to turn a light amber color. Be careful not to burn the sugar.
STEP 3: Add the cream. When amber in color, remove the sugar from the heat and add the cream, whisk until incorporated.
STEP 4: Add the butter. Slowly add the cubed butter to the caramel, one at a time, whisking as you go. Once all the butter has been added, continue to whisk until it has all melted.
STEP 5: Add salt and vanilla. Add the salt and vanilla to the caramel and whisk to combine. Pour the caramel into a glass jar and allow the caramel to cool to room temperature.
instructions for apple filling
STEP 1: Melt sugar and diced butter. Add butter and sugar to a large pot set over medium-low heat. Allow the butter and sugar to melt slowly.
STEP 2: Add the apples, lemon juice, and spices. Peel and slice the apples. Add the prepared apple slices, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, and cloves to the pot, and allow them to soften slightly for 5 minutes. Do not overcook them.
STEP 3: Add corn flour and cool. Combine the corn flour and water together in a small bowl. Add this mixture to the apple filling and mix well. Allow the corn flour mixture to thicken up the apple filling, this takes about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the stovetop and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
STEP 4: Assemble tarts. Fill each blind-baked tart shell with apple pie filling. Then grate the remaining pastry over the top of the apple filling.
STEP 5: Bake. Bake the tarts in a preheated oven at 170°C (340°F) for about 20 minutes or until the tops of the tarts are golden brown. Remove the tarts from the oven and allow them to cool in their tins for 20 minutes before removing them and placing them onto a wire rack.
STEP 6: Serve. Place each pie on a serving plate and serve it with a dollop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of homemade caramel sauce. You can also choose to dust the tarts with icing sugar and serve them plain if you'd prefer.
Hint: If you are struggling to roll out the pastry, this may be because it's too warm. Make sure it is properly chilled as this helps make the rolling and lining of tins much easier.
Variations
You can get pretty creative with the recipe for this apple crumble tart by adding your own extra ingredients to the filling, like raisins, sultanas, or dried cranberries.
This recipe would also be great with this recipe for Vanilla Bean Custard drizzled over the top!
Equipment
To make these delicious apple pie tarts you'll need a food processor for the pastry, as well as 8 small loose-bottom tart molds.
The tins I used were 12cm in diameter and 5cm deep. If the tins you have are different you may need more or fewer tins. You can also choose to bake this recipe in a single tart pan with a removable bottom for one large caramel apple crumble tart.
Storage
Store any left-over mini apple pies in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days. Store any leftover caramel in the fridge for about 5 days.
These apple crumble pies can be baked and then frozen if desired. Wrap each pie individually in plastic wrap and store them in the freezer for up to two months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before heating them in the oven before serving.
Top tip
Follow the top tips below to make sure you are baking the perfect mini apple tarts.
- Check the true temperature of your oven with an oven thermometer before baking.
- If the pastry is hard to roll out and sticks to the kitchen counter, chill it for longer in the fridge.
- Don't overcook the apples on the stovetop, as they will soften further when in the oven.
- Watch the caramel carefully as it is changing colour as it can burn quickly.
FAQ
The eggs I use weigh 56 grams, if you aren't sure if you have the same eggs - weigh the eggs you have and adjust accordingly.
Caramel when on the stove can burn very quickly, and you will notice it by the smell of the sugar. If this happens, it is better to start again as the caramel will be very bitter.
Blind baking is the process of prebaking tart shells before filling them. To ensure the pastry cases remain hollow the pastry is lined with parchment paper and filled with baking beans or rice - which act as weights. The weight of the beans or rice helps prevent the pastry from rising during baking.
These apple crumble tartlets are the perfect dessert to serve at a dinner party or as an afternoon treat for special guests. And serving them with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream makes this dessert even more special.
If you love mini tart recipes, you have to try the below!
If you give this recipe a try and love it as much as I do, please leave a star review and comment below - I love hearing from all of you!
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Happy Baking
With Love,
Kitty
📖 Recipe
Apple Crumble Tarts
Equipment
- 8x loose bottom mini tart tins
Ingredients
Pastry
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 100 g castor sugar
- 1 egg extra large
- 1 egg yolk extra large
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 350 g cake flour
Caramel Sauce
- 100 g sugar white granulated
- 60 ml heavy cream
- 80 g unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Apple Filling
- 850 g green apples
- 70 g unsalted butter
- 150 g light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 60 ml lemon juice
- 1½ tablespoon cornflour
- 40 ml water
Instructions
Pastry
- Add the butter and sugar to a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is well combined and homogenous.
- First, add the whole egg to the creamed mixture with the food processor running, and pulse until combined. Then add the egg yolk and vanilla and pulse again.
- Sift together the flour and salt and add this flour mixture to the egg and butter mixture all at once. Pulse until a dough forms, do not overmix.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, cover it in a sheet of plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F) and brush 8 mini tart tins with melted butter.
- Remove the chilled dough from the fridge and roll it out on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of ½ cm ( ¼ inch) using a rolling pin.
- Cut discs of the rolled pastry slightly larger than the tart tins, place these pastry discs into the buttered tart tins, and use your fingertips to gently press the pastry into the base of the tin and up the sides of the tins.
- Line each pastry tin with parchment paper and fill this with uncooked rice or pie weights. Place the tins onto a cookie sheet pan and blind bake the shells in a preheated oven for 15 minutes until a light golden brown. Set aside.
Caramel Sauce
- Add the sugar to a medium-sized saucepan set over medium-high heat.
- Whisk continuously until the sugar has melted. Once melted, stop whisking and allow the sugar to turn a light amber color. Be careful not to burn the sugar.
- When amber in color, remove the sugar from the heat and add the cream, whisk until incorporated.
- Slowly add the cubed butter to the caramel, one at a time, whisking as you go. Once all the butter has been added, continue to whisk until it has all melted.
- Add the salt and vanilla to the caramel and whisk to combine. Pour the caramel into a glass jar and allow the caramel to cool to room temperature.
Apple Filling
- In a large pot set over medium heat, add the butter and sugar. Allow the butter and sugar to melt slowly.
- Peel and slice the apples. Add the prepared apple slices, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, and cloves to the pot, and allow them to soften slightly for 5 minutes. Do not overcook them.
- Combine the corn flour and water together in a small bowl. Add this mixture to the apple filling and mix well. Allow the corn flour mixture to thicken up the apple filling, this takes about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the stovetop and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
- Fill each blind-baked tart shell with apple pie filling. Then grate the remaining pastry over the top of the apple filling.
- Bake the tarts in a preheated oven at 170°C (340°F) for about 20 minutes or until the tops of the tarts are golden brown. Remove the tarts from the oven and allow them to cool in their tins for 20 minutes before removing them and placing them onto a wire rack.
- Place each pie on a serving plate and serve it with a dollop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of homemade caramel sauce. You can also choose to dust the tarts with icing sugar and serve them plain if you'd prefer.
Val says
So easy to make and this pastry recipe is amazing