Adam's Apples

Tarte Tatin is the classic French apple tart, a splendid if finicky marriage of Pâte Brisée crust and Calville Blanc d'Hiver apples. On Thanksgiving I had Calville but did not want to fuss with that crust. So I took a leaf from Rowan Jacobsen’s book, Apples of Uncommon Character , and made his easier version, which he playfully calls “Tarte Tintin.”

When I saw those Calville Blancs at Farmers Market the day before Thanksgiving, I knew I had to bake a real tarte aux pommes. My first tarte aux pommes Despite the black bits this was a delicious holiday desert, and what really made it so were the apples.

Famous in pies, turnovers, crumbles, cobblers, pan dowdies, and brown betties, apples are great in the oven or on the stovetop. A weekend breakfast treat in my house is this baked apple pancake, which we just call "a pancake." It is basically a big popover with thinly sliced apples in the batter. Though it needs 25 minutes to bake, it's easy to make and tastes as light and spectacular as it looks. Garnished with powdered sugar or ice cream, this is desert, but I prefer it with Grade B maple syrup for a special brunch.