This Apple Tart with Custard is a ready made apple pie and custard pudding all in one! It is packed with soft sliced dessert apples coated in an apricot jam and cider glaze and set in a sweet creamy vanilla custard, all held together in a sweet pastry case.
This is one of those desserts that looks so impressive people will think it is really complex...but in fact it is, well as easy as pie you might say!
I already have recipes for Proper English Vanilla Custard and Deep Spicy Apple Pie so why the heck not bring these guys together in one pie I thought! The advantage is you have a desert that you can serve just as one, or with a dollop of vanilla ice cream on top. Truly divine.
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Why make this Apple and Custard Tart?
Impressive but easy all-in-one pie✔️
Made with 4-5 eating apples✔️
Crisp, flaky pastry base✔️
Apricot and cider glaze for a bit of flavour✔️
Packed with a creamy vanilla custard✔️
Serve with soft vanilla ice cream✔️
Ingredients and Substitutions
See the Recipe card below for exact quantities
- Crisp eating apples
I use Braeburns as I love their flavour. Granny Smith also work well. Cooking apples can be used if you like a bit more sharpness to your apple deserts. Try to avoid apples with a high water content, such as Pink Lady as they may not keep their form well. - Apricot jam
Apricots blend really well with apple flavours. Orange or peach jam will work well. Marmalade is another option to give a bit of a sharper hit. - Dry cider
Cider is added to the apricot jam and used to line the base of the pastry case, coat the apples and glaze the top of the tart. The cider is simmered briefly which means it no longer has the same alcohol content and the apple flavour is intensified. You can however replace the cider with pure apple juice or orange juice or leave it out all together. - Golden caster sugar (superfine sugar)
Substitute with white caster sugar. It needs to be caster sugar though so that it easily blends in with the eggs for the custard. - Plain flour
Used in the pastry, no need to sift it first. - Fine salt
Also used in the pastry to bring out flavours.
- Egg yolks
Either use 2 large egg yolks or 3 medium egg yolks. - Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
You can use caster sugar instead of icing sugar. Icing sugar works well in the pastry though as it also contains cornflour which gives the pastry its flaky texture. - Unsalted butter
Needs to be nice a cold and is used in the pastry and if too warm your pastry will be more like stiff cake dough! - Lard
You can use unsalted instead of the lard. I love to use lard in pastry as it always gives it a delicious crisp and flaky texture. - Ground cinnamon
A touch is sprinkled over the top of the pie, just for a slight bit of flavour and general prettiness! Ground Nutmeg, preferable fresh, would work well as a substitution. - Demerara sugar - optional
Demerara sugar caramelises on the top of the tart as it bakes and makes it look beautiful. Soft brown sugar can be an alternative or even a little white sugar. - Vanilla bean paste
Vital for flavour in your custard but can be substituted with vanilla extract, or see below for an almond alternative. - Full fat milk
- Used for the custard. You can get away with using semi-skimmed (half fat) but if so it is best to replace 50 ml of the milk with single cream or replace 30 ml of the milk with double (heavy) cream.
- Cornflour (cornstarch)
Used to thicken the custard.
Instructions
Sweet Pastry Case instructions
With some extra butter, grease your pie dish all over.
Mix your flour, icing sugar (sift it first if lumpy) and salt together in your food processor. Dot over cubed cold unsalted butter and lard and pulse until the mixture becomes sandy in consistency.
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Add your egg yolk and pulse again until the mixture starts to form large lumps. Don't worry if there is still some dry unmixed mixture in the base still.
Tip the pastry mixture out onto your worktop and pull it all together into a ball. Handle it as little as possible and do not knead it, otherwise it will make the pastry tough. Flatten to a depth of about 1 inch, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes to allow the fat to set.
Roll the pastry out to a size of about 34 cm. Drape the pastry over the rolling pin and then drape it over the pie dish. Push the pastry in the base first and then the sides making sure to get into the fluted sides. Use a fork to make holes in the base, this stops the pastry puffing up when baking.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set the pastry whilst your oven comes up to temperature. Scrunch up a piece of foil and press it into your tin to cover the pastry including the sides. Tip over about 2-3 layers of baking beans.
Bake for 20 minutes then remove the baking beans and foil and continue to bake until lightly golden all over and coming away at the sides.
Apricot and Cider Glaze
Used to line the pastry base, coat the apples and glaze the tart once baked.
Place your apricot jam and cider into your small saucepan. Heat of a medium setting whilst stirring to get rid of the lumps.
Simmer for 2 minutes to reduce the alcohol and create a sticky glaze. Set aside 3 tablespoons of the glaze.
Use a little on a pastry brush to spread out over the base of the pastry pie case. Peel and core your apples and then slice them into thin slices of about 5 mm. Add to the remaining glaze giving them a good mix to be sure they are fully coated.
Custard Tart Filling
In a heatproof bowl beat together your cornflour (cornstarch), egg yolks and sugar until they form a light yellow paste. A balloon whisk it the best utensil for this. About 30 seconds should do it.
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Place your milk, cream and vanilla bean paste into a small saucepan and heat over a medium setting, stirring all of the time to ensure the vanilla does not stick to the base.
Once your milk is just below boiling point gradually pour it into your egg mixture beating all of the time. Then return it all back the the saucepan and heat whilst stirring until it just begins to bubble.
Creating your Apple Tart with Custard
Place half if your glaze coated apples in the base of the pie dish ensuring all of the base is covered.
Then spread over your custard and place the rest of the apples slices on top, large flat side facing down so that they stand up.
Sprinkle over a little cinnamon and demerera sugar.
Bake for 20 minutes until golden all over. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then use a pastry brush too spread over the rest of your apricot and cider glaze. Serve right away.
Storage
This Apple Tart with Custard is best served as soon as baked.
It will keep for 3 days in an airtight container but needs to be refrigerated due to the custard content.
Alternatives
Apple and Custard Tartlets - use four small pie dishes instead of making one big pie. Follow the same method but blind bake for 10 minutes with baking beans and 10 minutes without.
Apple and Custard Tart with almonds - adding some flaked almonds to the top of your tart before baking gives it an additional crunch texture and looks even prettier!
Top tips for perfect Apple Tart with Custard
Perfect Pastry Tips
Chill the butter and lard AGAIN after cutting into cubes - if not really cold the dough will become cake like. I even put mine in the freezer for 10 minutes sometimes if very soft.
Pastry dough too wet - when mixed your pastry should be clumping together into soft balls but if it looks actually wet then simply add more flour (about 20 grams) and briefly mix it in. The pastry dough and pliable should be soft but not sticking to your hands.
Pastry dough too dry - if your pastry is not clumping together well add small amounts of ice cold water a teaspoon at a time.
Apple Pie Filling Tips
Prevent the apples oxidising (going brown) - as soon as they hit the air the interior of apples start to oxidise. Usually to prevent this happening it is best to peel and chop them right before you plan to use them. Adding them to a bowl of ice cold water along with the juice of a lemon also works well. I also tend to put a place over the top of them to prevent them from bobbing to the surface.
For this Apple Pie recipe though the good news is that adding them immediately to the apricot and cider glaze will also prevent oxidisation.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
📖 Recipe
Apple Tart with Custard
Here's what you'll need...
- Food processor optional as pastry can be made by hand
- Small saucepan and a large saucepan
- balloon whisk or small whisk
- Heat proof large bowl
- Baking beans or uncooked rice
Ingredients you'll need...
Note - see blog post for SUBSTITUTE SUGGESTIONS if you do not have all of the ingredients listed below.
Sweet Pastry Tart Case
- 250 g Plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- 50 g Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) - sifted if lumpy
- ¼ teaspoon Fine salt must be level
- 100 g Unsalted butter - cold cold, straight from the fridge - cut into 1cm cubes (you will also need a bit more for greasing the tin)
- 25 g Lard cold, straight from the fridge - cut into 1cm cubes
- 1 Large egg cold
Apricot and Cider Glaze
- 180 g Apricot jam
- 60 ml Dry cider or apple juice
Apple Tart Filling
- 4-5 Braeburn apples peeled and cored they should weight about 500 grams
- 25 g Cornflour (corn starch)
- 3 Egg yolks
- 40 g Caster surgar (super fine sugar)
- 200 g Full fat milk
- 200 g Double cream
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla bean paste
- ¼ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 1½ tablespoon Demerara sugar
Here's what we do...
Sweet Pastry Tart Case
- Grease your pie tin with a little extra butter. Make sure you get right into the fluted sides.
- If your Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) is a bit lumpy then sift it first. Mix your flour, icing sugar and fine salt together in a large mixing bowl, then tip into your food processor bowl with the large blade fitted.
- Add your very cold, cubed butter and lard and pulse the processor until the mixture becomes sand like. Keep removing the bowl and giving it a shake to ensure all of the dry mixture at the base is incorporated.If not using a food processor rub the fat into the flour using your fingertips.
- Next, add your egg and pulse again until the mixture starts to form large soft clumps. Don't wait until all of the dry flour in the base has been mixed in, as long as most of it is in clumps that is fine as it is important not to over mix. If mixing by hand use a fork to mix the egg in. If the mixture does not press together into clumps then add a teaspoon of very cold water. The pastry dough should be soft and easily stick together, it should not be sticky. If it is sticky add in a little more flour.
- Tip the mixture out onto your clean work surface and pull together into a ball making sure not to knead it.
- Flatten to a depth of about 1 inch, cover with cling film (plastic wrap) and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
- Lightly flour your works surface and then roll the pastry out into a circle with a diameter of 34cm. You will probably need to keep adding more flour underneath the pastry to be sure it does not stick.
- Drape the pastry over your rolling pin and the drape it over your greased pie dish.
- Gently push the pastry into the base of the tin first and then up and into the fluted sides. You want the pastry on the sides to be slightly thicker.
- Run your rolling pin over the tin to cut off the spare pastry and then very gently squeeze the pastry up so that it sits about 3-4mm above the edge of the tin to allow for shrinkage when it bakes. (This is why we want the pastry on the sides of the tin to be thicker).
- Use a fork to dot holes into the base, to prevent the pastry billowing up during baking and then refrigerate for another 20 minutes or pop in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile preheat your over to heat to 180°C Fan/200°C/Gas mark 5/390°F.
- Take strips of foil and gently lay them over the edges of the pastry tart pressing them down loosely to secure. This ensures the edges do not burn. Then take a large pie of foil and press it over the whole pie pushing it down gently to that it fits closely and covers all of the exposed pastry.
- Fill with baking beans or rice. You want to really weigh the pastry down, so 2 layers of baking beans are best. Make sure you cover all of the base thoroughly so that the edges do not puff up.
- Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the baking beans and large piece of foil but leave the pieces over the edges.
- Bake again for another 7-10 minutes until the pastry case is lightly golden all over.
- Reduce the temperature of your oven down to 160°C Fan/180°C/Gas mark 4/355°F and put your large baking tray in to heat.
Apricot and Cider Glaze
- Put your apricot jam and cider into your saucepan and heat on a medium setting until the jam melts.
- Bring to a fast boil and simmer for 2 minutes to thicken. If any scum forms on the top carefully remove it.
- Using a pastry brush spread a thin layer of the glaze over the base and sides of your baked pie case.
- Set aside 3 tablespoons of glaze to be used later but leave the rest in the saucepan.
Apple Tart Filling
- Place your caster sugar, egg yolks and cornflour into your large mixing bowl and beat together using a balloon whisk or normal whisk. After about 20-30 seconds the mixture should be a pale yellow colour. Set aside.
- Pour your milk and double (heavy) cream and vanilla bean paste into your large saucepan and heat on a medium setting, stirring all of the time, until it reaches just below boiling point. Once you start to see one or two bubbles on the top it is ready.
- Slowly tip the hot milk mixture into your egg mixture whisking all of the time.
- Then tip it all back into the large saucepan, return to the heat and bring to boiling point then remove from the heat and set aside.
- Peel and core your apples, one at at time so that they do not start to oxidise and cut into quarters. Slice into 5mm width slices.
- Use a little kitchen paper to try any moisture from the apple slices and roll them in the apricot and cider glaze you have in your saucepan.
- Take half of your coated apples slices and lay them over the base of the pastry pie, ensuring they cover it evenly and there are no gaps.
- Pour your custard over the apples and level it out.
- Take the rest of your apple slices and stand them, flat side down, in the custard in concentric circles. Try to place the largest ones at the edges.
- Sprinkle over your cinnamon and then your demerara sugar.
- Place the pie onto your heated baking sheet and bake in the centre of your oven for 30 minutes until golden on top.
- Leave the pie in the tin but put it on a cooling to cool for 10 minutes.
- Whilst it is still warm use your pastry brush to spread over the glaze which you set aside earlier
- Serve immediately with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. Absolute bliss!
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