Honey & apple tart

Despite the disapproval of health-conscious buddies, I find it hard to resist satisfying my sweet tooth. Usually I do so with ice cream, but opted for some hot pudding, full of slightly sinful pleasures…

Honey & apple tart
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To make a honey and apple tart dessert for four, you will need:

  • 1 small tin chopped pie apples
  • 1 cup self-raising flour
  • 1 egg
  • 125g butter
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • ½ cup milk
  • Ground cinnamon

For the sauce:

  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 2 tablespoons of honey

Begin by preheating the oven to 180°C. Then combine the 125g of butter and the ½ cup of white sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Set the controls to maximum and mix until the ingredients have a creamed appearance. Break the egg into a separate bowl and whip it with a fork or whisk until yolk and white are smoothly combined.

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Pour the beaten egg into the creamed sugar and butter mixture and run the mixer at half-speed or less. While this is going on, add fractions of the flour and milk alternately until all ingredients are combined into a lump-free mixture.

Lightly grease an ovenproof pie dish with butter. Pour half the mixture into the pie dish and spread half the can of chopped pie apples over the top. Sprinkle this generously with ground cinnamon – the fresher, the better. Carefully spoon the second half of the mixture over the surface and place the pie dish in the preheated oven. Bake for half an hour.

When ready, remove the tart from the oven and prick it all over when it has set. Why bakers do this is a mystery to me;  perhaps it provides an outlet for steam. In a small saucepan, melt the honey and butter together for the sauce, stirring fom time to time. When they have combined, pour the hot sauce over the top of the apple pie. At this point, return the pie to the hot (180°C) oven for a final five-minute blast of baking, then remove it at once.

You can, of course, serve this delicious confection just as it is. Or you can spoon freshly whipped cream over the pudding. On the other hand, your guests may be sufficiently enticed by the honey to desire just a little bit more of it. Pour half a cup or so of honey into a saucepan and add 25ml of either whisky or rum. Heat this up to drive off the alcohol and pour the sauce over the pie.

Finally, if you have a sweet tooth like me, you can always add a spoonful or two of vanilla ice cream.