Christmas

Christmas tree apple tart recipe for festive gatherings

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Jingle all the way with our tempting festive recipe. This Christmas-tree-shaped apple tart will wow at the dinner table and is sure to be something of a crowd-pleaser this party season.

Plus, with the warming flavour of ginger weaving throughout, you can be sure there are a raft of wellbeing benefits to be had, too. Ginger is high in gingerol – a substance that is known to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This means that ginger may be helpful for staving off symptoms of a cold. Perfect at this time of year!

Not only that, this helpful spice is often used to help support digestion. We love serving our festive apple tart with a dollop of crème fraîche for additional gut-healthy benefits.

Almonds add a delicious crunch here and – as you might have guessed – are one of our go-to wellbeing heroes. High in vitamin E, almonds can help to support the health of our hair, skin and nails. Plus, there’s evidence to suggest that they can help to balance blood sugar and may even have a role in lowering blood pressure.

Discover more delicious Christmas recipes here

Ingredients

  • 250g (half a block) puff pastry
  • 2-3 crisp eating apples
  • 2 balls of stem ginger, finely chopped
  • 40g butter
  • 2 tbsp of syrup from stem ginger jar
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp dark brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp brandy or whisky
  • 1 tbsp flaked almonds
  • Yoghurt or crème fraîche to serve

Method

  1. Line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper.
  2. Cut the pastry block in half diagonally so you have a triangle. (Keep the other half for another dish.) On a lightly floured surface, gently roll out the pastry, keeping the triangular shape as much as you can. Aim for an isosceles triangle just over 30cm in height and 30cm across at the base, with the thickness of a pound coin.
  3. Next, it’s time to give your tree some branches. Measure 5cm down from the top of the tree and make two horizontal cuts inwards, approx 1.5cm long, then again, approx. 6cm lower than your first cut. Continue with the next layers in the same way. The final cut for the fifth and bottom layer will be slightly longer in length than the ones above it and will go all the way to the outside corners of the base.
  4. Carefully transfer your pastry tree to the baking tray. Gently score a line all the way around the inside of the tree with a knife, about 1cm away from the edge. Take care not to cut all the way through the pastry.
  5. Quarter and core the apples and slice finely lengthways. Arrange the apples in an overlapping pattern, starting at the bottom. Work up the tree, adding overlapping apples as you go, aiming for one layer of apples on each branch. Don’t worry if there are gaps where the apples don’t quite fit. Leave these until the end and just fill with apple offcuts. Sprinkle over the chopped stem ginger as evenly as you can.
  6. To make the glaze, melt the butter, stem ginger syrup, lemon juice and brown sugar in a small pan over a gentle heat. When it starts to bubble, take off the heat, add in the brandy and stir well. Lightly brush half of the glaze over the apples, staying within the scored line. Keep the remaining glaze in the pan to use later.
  7. Refrigerate the tart for ten minutes while you pre-heat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas mark 7.
  8. Bake for approx. 12 minutes and gently reheat the remaining glaze until warm. Remove your tart from the oven, dribble over the remaining glaze as evenly as you can, sprinkle over the almonds and bake for a further three or four minutes until the pastry is well risen and golden brown. Serve immediately with a dollop of yoghurt or crème fraîche.