Easy Peach Tarte Tatin Recipe

This peach Tarte Tatin is the summer version of the classic French Tarte Tatin, usually made with apples. It is a pâte brisée or pie pastry cake topped with caramelized peaches, cooked upside down. The fruits remain juicy and sweet, while the pastry forms a crunchy crust. It can be served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

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• Ingredients
• Instructions
• How to serve it
• Top Tips
• Related
• 📋Easy Peach Tarte Tatin Recipe

Tarte Tatin is a delightful dessert, a puff or shortcrust pastry topped with apples and rich caramel.

It combines the crunchiness of the short-crust pastry with the gooeyness of the caramel, refreshed by the sweet and soft bites of the fruit.

Compared to the apples, the peaches have a smoother pulp, add summer freshness to the caramel, and provide a delightful contrast to the crunchy crust.

I sprinkle pistachios and deglaze the caramel with Calvados or Cognac to add a complex structure and flavor.

I love this version with peaches, and since I have my own tree, I make it quite often at this time of the year. 

It is a great dessert, very easy to make, and can be prepared in advance.

For more desserts with fruits, you can find Italian Apple cake, overripe pear crumble, strawberry shortcake, Italian fruit tart or lemon magic cake.

Ingredients

Best peach to choose

The best peaches for this Tarte Tatin are yellow peaches, which are juicier and smoother. If you cannot find them, the white peaches are fine, but they will not be as smooth as the yellow ones.

I wouldn't use the flat peaches as they are not as juicy. I like to eat flat peaches fresh as they are sweet but crunchy.

You can eat them with your hand as a snack without worrying about fruit juices dripping down your elbow.

In this recipe, I only use 3 peaches but you can use more if you like a fruity cake.

Topping

Besides the ingredients for the pastry, which are listed here below, you will need:

• butter
• brown sugar
• peeled pistachios (optional)
• Calvados or Cognac (optional)

Pie crust

This is a classic shortcrust pastry recipe with no sugar that I use for any recipe, from savory to sweet. 

The fruit is already very sweet, so you don't need more sugar in the pastry.

To find out more, you can read the recipe: savory and sweet pasta frolla

​You can also use store-bought puff pastry to save time.

These are the ingredients:

• flour
• butter at room temperature
• egg
• 1 pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoon of water

Hint: you would need a 9 in – 22 cm baking pan that you can also put on the stovetop

Instructions

Pie dough

The process is straightforward:

1. Mix all the ingredients
2. Make a flat ball with the pastry, wrap it in cling film
3. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes so that the butter resolidifies

4. Take the pastry from the fridge and roll it flat into a round shape, slightly larger than the baking pan.
5. Put the rolled pastry in the freezer for 10 minutes flat on a baking sheet

If you have a busy day ahead, you can buy the already made pastry dough and proceed as from step 4

Cutting the peaches

1. Peel the three peaches and cut them in half to remove the kernels,
2. Try to make some nice round shapes

Hint: In this recipe, I use halved peaches, if you prefer you can cut peach slices instead

Caramelizing the peaches

1. Pour the butter and sugar into a round metal baking pan (9 in – 22 cm). Place on medium-low heat on the stove to make the caramel sauce
2. As soon as the caramel starts turning golden brown, add the pistachios
3. Place the peaches at the bottom of the pan with the round side facing down. Let it simmer for 5 minutes at very low heat
4. Add the calvados to the peaches and let the alcohol evaporate for another 5 minutes
5. Cover the peaches with the upside-down pastry, and ensure the edges are inside the sides of the pan, covering the peaches and touching the caramel. Don’t try to fold them nicely; you risk burning yourself.
6. Make some small slits with the tip of a sharp knife, so the steam will come out while cooking.

Baking it

7. Bake in a hot oven at 350 F - 180 C for 35 minutes.
8. Once ready, take it out of the oven, and with proper oven mitts, turn it upside down immediately onto a serving dish.

9. Ensure all the caramel at the bottom of the pan is poured over the tart before it cools down. Otherwise, it will stick to the pan.

How to serve it

You can serve it cold or at room temperature. If you serve it warm, ensure the caramel is not burning hot.

You can top it with a cold vanilla ice cream and a small glass of cold homemade limoncello or homemade orange liquor.

It keeps for up to 3 days but should be stored in the fridge

Top Tips

• Use yellow peaches as they are juicy and smoother
• Try to cut them in perfect halves; if you get some small pieces, you can make a delicious peach salad and add a tablespoon of wine. Or you can put the pieces in a plastic bag, freeze them and use them for jam.
• Buy good quality pistachios; I buy pistachios from Bronte Sicily, the best quality here in Europe
• When you melt butter and sugar, you can stir the pan. When you make caramel with water and sugar, you cannot, as the sugar will recrystallize. Sugar and butter will not crystallize.
• Keep the heat medium-low when making the caramel. The sugar will suddenly start to turn yellow and quickly brown. Add the pistachios and the peach as soon as possible to stop the caramel from burning.
• Make sure the pastry is cold and firm when you cover the caramelized peaches so that it will be nice and crunchy.
• The caramel is extremely hot and can cause severe burns, be very careful when you lay the pastry on the hot peaches.
• Don’t try to fold the pastry nicely; you risk burning yourself. I like the rough look.
• Make small slits in the pastry to release the steam while cooking

Related

Looking for other desserts with fruits like this? Try these:

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