Ingredient Notes

Best Apples to Use for Apple Tart

Granny Smith green apples are the best for this Apple tart recipe. They have a slightly tart flavor that sweetens once cooked. Granny Smith apples also have the advantage of not browning too much once cooked, so you’ll end up with a lovely golden apple color on the tart once they are cooked. 

Granny Smith apples are a popular choice for desserts such as apple tarts, apple pie, apple cobbler, apple crumble, and apple sponge cake (bizcocho). 

Other apples that are suitable for cooking and baking include:

• Braeburn 
• Fuji
• Cortland
• Honey Gold 
• Jonathan 
• Gala 
• Haralson

Preparing Apples

We find it’s best to peel, core, and slice your apples right before you need to use them. That way, you prevent them from browning once the flesh is exposed to the oxygen in the air. Slice your apples into half moons around 1/8th inch thick (5mm). Once you have arranged your apples, give them a gentle drizzle of lemon juice from a fresh lemon. This will also help prevent the apples from browning. 

Cooking with Sherry

Sherry is a type of fortified wine made from white grapes and is most commonly produced in the region of Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is excellent for cooking and baking, with many famous recipes using sherry paired with food. 

For this recipe, we used Pedro Ximinez sherry which is made from over-ripened grapes. The sherry originates from the town of Jerez and is prized as a rich, sweet-flavored sherry that pairs well with food and desserts.

Sherry is shelf-stable due to the alcohol content (typically produced between 15-22% vol). It will stay fresher if refrigerated but does not require to be refrigerated for brief periods of time.

Apricot Jam

We opted for apricot jam as a base glaze as it works well with the tartness of the Granny Smith apples. That said, you can easily use any type of jam. Marmalade or apple conserve also work great. 

White or Brown Sugar

This is ultimately up to personal taste as there is no major disadvantage to using either type of sugar. Typically with baking, brown sugar tends to provide a softer, chewier texture, although this recipe doesn’t require a long period of baking so just choose which sugar you prefer or you have in the pantry already. 

If you’re not keen on either type of sugar, simply omit it. The apples, sherry, and apricot jam provide plenty of sweetness. 

Puff Pastry

We opted to use store-bought puff pastry simply for convenience. Store-bought puff pastry is cheap and easy to use. If you feel like making your own, puff pastry is essentially made using butter, water, salt, and plain flour and takes around 30 minutes to make.

Want More Fruity Dessert Recipes?

Here are our favorite Spanish dessert recipes with fruit:

• Fig and vermouth cheesecake
• Baked orange chocolate cheesecake
• White mulberry bizcocho
• Chocolate and pear tart with sherry
• Baked cheesecake with honey and orange
• Super moist orange and grapefruit cake

More Traditional Spanish Dessert Recipes to Try

• Spanish rice pudding (arroz con leche)
• Baked cheesecake with honey and orange
• Fried milk (leche frita)
• Blue cheese and sherry