Apple Tart from Atelier Escha & Logy

Baking and gaming. Both hobbies I utterly love :3 After giving much thought, as the afternoon rain pitter-patters outside, I have decided to make a new blog and share my love for them. The blog name was inspired as I was playing Atelier Ayesha, LOL.

I eat food, I read about food, I write about food; it's no wonder I feel like an elephant QwQ No matter~ 

The first time I picked up Atelier Escha & Logy from the store shelves, it's like I've hit the jackpot $w$ Finally, a game I can indulge myself with! My first ever JRPG! ^^ Sooner or later I should really touch base with Final Fantasy or something QwQ

The game shows Escha Malier, a 15-year-old alchemist joining the local administration, along with 18-year-old Logix Fiscario from Central City, in a small town called Colseit. It's quite heart-warming when playing Escha's route, but Logy's route shows a little dark and emotional side, too. I wasn't able to defeat Gullveig :'( so I didn't get to battle with Flameu and find out the ultimate truth of the Unexplored Ruins and Flameu's sad past. It was only after watching the anime adaptation of the game and get a forbidden taste of spoilers from some wikis that I was able to fully grasp the whole story. It's just tear-jerking ><

Sadness aside, Colseit is a town brimming with apples, so from Escha's cauldron, out pops an Apple Tart! If only baking was as easy and hassle-free as Synthesising ><

I'd never made pies and tarts before, so playing this game made my heart itch. I had told myself that during the holidays I shall bake less as constant purchasing of ingredients can be quite expensive. But no, as a lover of apple pastries, this was one experiment I couldn't dismiss. Apple and cinnamon and butter pastry <3 

I'm sensing a French theme in these baked goods in the Atelier series, as there's an Apple tart in Atelier Escha & Logy and a Baguette in Atelier Ayesha. No surprise, since atelier is a French word. It makes me wonder how the previous Atelier games are like.

Struck with inspiration, I looked up some apple tart recipes from Youtube. No sooner had I found the perfect one from the channel Entertaining with Beth ^^ The tart was composed of three layers: a tart shell, an apple compote and slices of apples on top. I like looking up recipes during my spare time, haha XD Already my W.I.T.C.H. file is bursting with printed and handwritten recipes, some of which I haven't tried out yet :P

I didn't have a food processor like her, so I made the tart shell by hand. What I ended up with was a rather sticky dough >< I don't know, maybe I should just exclude the water and egg yolk mixture, because when I poured some onto the dough, it became even stickier >< I ended up only pouring half of the mixture and added more flour to make it less sticky.

It was a sticky setback, but at least the end result was still delicious ^^ My friend came over for a visit and helped with arranging the apple slices on the tart to make the whole thing look like a rose.

After following the recipe, the tart turned out beautifully~

The edges of the apple slices may have burned a little from the high heat, but the the tart looked more like a wisp white rose which had undergone some tragic incident and had a mournful back story or something. It's beautifully sad~ :') or is it sadly beautiful? o.O

Unfortunately, while taking out the tart from the oven, I didn't think the removable tart pan can be removed that easily @@ The burning outer ring of the pan slipped and hung itself on my forearm, making stripes of burnt skin as I quickly place the baked tart on the table and consequently shake the ring out into the kitchen sink.

My wound is healing now, so no worries, at least they're not melon-sized boils or anything O.O Any time now the scabs will come off and smooth new skin will be regenerated~

A brush of apricot jam on the apple petals of the tart and it's done! :D My tribute to Atelier Escha & Logy <3

It's lovely, tart, buttery and sweet <3 the apple slices were tossed with some lemon juice, which gave them a tangy flavour. I really recommend giving this recipe a try, even if you're not an Atelier fan. Just be careful with the hot tart pan!

CLASSIC FRENCH APPLE TART

Serves 8

For Crust:

1 ¼ cups flour (150 g)

1 tbsp sugar (12 g)

¼ tsp salt (1.5 g)

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cubed (120 g)

1 egg yolk

2 tbsp ice water (30 ml)

For the compote:

3 gala apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks

2 tbsp sugar (25 g)

¼ cup of apple juice (60 ml)

¼ cup of water (60 ml)

1/8 tsp of cinnamon (2 g)

zest of 1 lemon

For the topping:

2 gala apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/8 " thin

½ tsp of sugar (2 g)

2 tbsp apricot jam, heated until liquefied (30 ml)

juice of ½ a lemon



Method:

In a bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar 

and pulse until combined. And butter cubes a few at a 

time, pulsing quickly until dough resembles a coarse meal. 

Beat egg together with water. Add egg mixture, slowly, 

pulsing just until dough comes together. Turn out onto a 

floured surface and roll into a ball and then pat down into 

a disk. Wrap disk in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes 

(or pop in the freezer for 10).

Meanwhile, place apple chunks, juice, water cinnamon and 

zest in a heavy-bottomed sauce pan. Cover and bring to a 

boil and let cook for 10 mins.

Simmer uncovered until most of the liquid is evaporated. 

Mash apples into a paste with a fork. Allow to cool 

completely, it will thicken as it cools.

Roll out dough onto a floured surface and fit into a 9" tart 

pan. Spread a single layer of compote on the bottom, and 

place in freezer while you prep your apples.

Peel, core and slice apples very thin, about 1/8 " thick. 

Place in bowl and squeeze with lemon juice to prevent 

browning.

Remove tart from the freezer. When placing the apples the 

idea is to create an escargot pattern. Starting from the 

outside and working your way into the center. Layer each 

apple, cut side down, one slightly overlapping the other, 

making your way all around the tart until you reach the 

center. 

Bake at 400F (200 c) for 15 minutes and then reduce heat 

to 350F (175 c) and bake for 20 more minutes, or until 

golden brown. Then place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes 

just until the apples begin to get lightly charred.

Place the jam in the microwave and heat on high for 15 secs

or until melted. Brush tart with jam to create a nice shine. 

Et voila!

Serve with vanilla ice cream or a dollop of homemade 

whipped cream.