The Simplest Apple Tart

You're 5 ingredients away from a tarte fine aux pommes, an elegantly understated French bakery favorite

This easy tart features a flaky crust, crisp, caramelized edges, and rings of tender, sweet-tart apple slices. (Audrey Le Goff)

This tarte fine aux pommes—literally translated as “thin apple tart”—is a French bakery staple each fall. It’s made with only two key ingredients, a puff pastry crust and seasonal apples, thinly sliced and arranged in elegant spirals. The apple topping is completed with a few simple additions that every household has on hand: butter, sugar, and a glossy jam glaze—the secret to a French bakery-worthy finish.

The tart comes together in no time at all, is eaten by hand, and is utterly delicious—proof that sometimes, simple really is best.

Choosing the Right Apples

This minimalist tart truly lets the apples shine, so always be sure to choose the right variety for the task at hand.

Here’s the golden rule: Always choose baking apples. Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Braeburn, Mutsu, Golden Delicious, and Granny Smith are all great varieties to use for this kind of tart. These varieties aren’t nearly as juicy when cooked, so they won’t turn mushy or make a soggy crust.

I highly recommend that you stick with only one variety for this recipe. Mixing varieties will cause an uneven look after baking, and a clean, uniform appearance is part of the appeal.

Personally, I like to use Granny Smith or Honeycrisp apples for this recipe. Both varieties are crisp and not overly sweet. They have a nice, firm flesh that holds its shape while baking, which is perfect since we will be slicing the apples thinly and creating a beautiful pattern with them.

The apples need to be peeled and then cut very thinly. To do so, you can use a mandoline or simply cut them by hand using a sharp kitchen knife.

Use firm, crisp, not overly sweet baking apples for best results. (NIKCOA/Shutterstock)

The Crust and Assembly

I often rely on store-bought puff pastry to save time, but you can certainly make your own from scratch. Puff pastry warms up quickly and gets increasingly sticky, making it much more difficult to work with, so act fast when rolling and cutting the pastry into a circle and transferring it onto the baking sheet.

Don’t go overboard with brushing melted butter over the top of the apples before baking, as it will ooze off the sides and likely burn. A single, light layer is all that’s required.

A Glossy Finish

The final step for this elegant dessert is known in French as “abricoter.” After taking the baked tart from the oven, abricoter is the process of thinning apricot jam with water, slightly warming it, and brushing it over the fruit topping. The glaze gives the fruit a lovely shine while protecting it from drying out or oxidizing. This process is common in classic French baking, and you will see the majority of fruit tarts in bakeries across the country bearing this lovely glazed look.

For this thin apple tart, I love using traditional apricot jam, as it provides a subtle yellow glaze that’s perfect for highlighting the apple slices; an apple jelly would also work nicely. Currant jelly is another common option, but I don’t recommend using red jellies or jams for this recipe, as the color will distort the golden apple shine.

Don’t Wait

As with most puff pastry-based baked goods, this tart should be served the day it’s made. After that, the puff pastry crust loses its crunch and flakiness, drastically altering the taste and texture of the dessert.

Classic French Thin Apple Tart (Tarte Fine Aux Pommes)

Makes one 12-inch tart

• 3 large baking apples
• 1 sheet puff pastry (approximately 10 inches by 10 inches), thawed according to package instructions, if frozen
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 to 2 tablespoons apricot jam or apple jelly
• 1 tablespoon water

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F with a rack in the middle. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured working surface, roll out the sheet of puff pastry into a 13-inch square. Cut out a 12-inch circle from that dough (using a plate or a tart pan placed on top as a guide will make it easier). Poke the pastry all over with a fork to prevent bubbling while it bakes. Then, transfer the puff pastry circle onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet and place it in the fridge while you prepare the apples.

Peel and core the apples. Cut them in half or into quarters, then slice them into potato chip-thin slices. You can do this by hand or with a mandoline.

Peel, core, and very thinly slice the apples. (Audrey Le Goff)

Remove the puff pastry from the fridge. Arrange the apple slices over the pastry in a circular pattern, slightly overlapping the slices. Start with the largest apple slices for the outer circle, and keep the smallest apple slices for the center. You don’t need to leave a border, so get the slices as close to the edge as you can.

Starting with the larger slices, working from the outer edges to the center, arrange the apple slices on the puff pastry circle in slightly overlapping rings. (Audrey Le Goff)

(Audrey Le Goff)

(Audrey Le Goff)

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter and lightly brush it over the apples, being careful not to make it too thick; a single, light brushing is all that’s required. Then, sprinkle the tart evenly with the sugar.

Lightly brush the apples with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar before baking. (Audrey Le Goff)

Bake the tart for 20 to 25 minutes or until the crust browns on the edges and the apples look slightly caramelized. Let it cool for 2 to 3 minutes, and then transfer it onto a cooling rack.

Mix the apricot jam with the water and lightly brush the glaze over the apples. Serve and enjoy!

Bake until the crust browns and the apples look slightly caramelized, glaze the top, then slice and serve the same day for the best texture. (Audrey Le Goff)