Tarte Tatin Recipes and History

"Tarte Tatin" is like an apple pie, but without the bottom crust. Alternatively, it is an upside-down apple tart. Depends on how you look at it.

The Tarte Tatin recipe is attributed to Stephanie Tatin, who was the chef in the family-run 'Hotel Tatin'. She created the recipe in 1889, although the story goes that it was created by accident, but proved so popular that she continued to make it.

We offer two versions of this recipe:

• Tarte Tatin Recipe 1 - This uses cinnamon and is baked entirely in the oven.

• Tarte Tatin Recipe 2 - This is first cooked on the stove, then finished in the oven.

Recipe 1 is slightly quicker and easier. Recipe 2 is a bit more work as cooking is done in two stages. However, the advantage of recipe 2 is that you can check that the sugar is properly caramelising (this is the only tricky bit of the recipe), so you can make sure that there are no problems.

Although a traditional Tarte Tatin is made with apples, the same recipe is now used with other fruits (e.g. pears, or bananas). I suggest you try the traditional approach first, then if you would like some variety simply change the fruit.