I have to tell you I was pretty disappointed with our apple trees this year. The Jonathan tree had plenty of flowers, but bore no fruit. The old Winesap out front took its cue from the Jonathan. Ditto, not one apple.The only ones that did fruit were the dwarf crab apple trees, and we only got a couple handfuls from them.

That’s why buying a bag of Granny Smith apples that were on sale made my day.

Granny Smiths, with their tart flavor, are wonderful for baking. They hold up pretty well during the baking process, so are nice for desserts like apple tarts.

And a tart recipe is what I wanted to share with you. It’s a new one for me, but one I’ve been wanting to try ever since I saw Ina Garten make these “favorite” apple tarts on her TV show.

These French apple tarts with a base of puff pastry are really easy to make and, with an apricot jelly glaze, look like they’re made in a Parisian patisserie.

If you need an impressive, delicious dessert, make a batch. A bowl of sweetened freshly whipped cream would be a lovely side.

IMPORTANT: After I published this in my newspaper column, I had a reader who said her tarts burned in the oven. Here’s what I told her, so take this into consideration when you bake the tarts. I did add these to the recipe to update it.

Puff pastry needs a high temperature to create the flaky layers and it must be cold going into the oven. I’m thinking that less sugar (1/2 cup) and butter (6 tablespoons is what Ina used)  could be used especially since some puff pastry sheets are smaller. I used a French puff pastry made with all butter and it was a good size. Also ovens vary. With some of my puff pastry recipes, I start out at 400 then lower the temp to 350 after 15 minutes and that may work here, as well.

French apple tarts

Ingredients

1 package (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted and kept very cold

4 small (6 oz or so) Granny Smith apples

1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar – if pastry is not made with all butter and is smaller, go with 1/2 cup

6-8 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and diced real small – Ina used 6 tablespoons and I used 8

Cinnamon – optional

1 cup apricot jelly or warm sieved apricot jam

3 tablespoons Calvados, rum or water or bit more to thin jelly out if needed – I used water and a bit of lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and see note above.

Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.

Cut each sheet of puff pastry into 4 squares. Divide the pastry between the prepared sheet pans and refrigerate while you prepare the apples.

Peel apples and cut in half through stem. Remove stems and cores with a sharp knife and a melon baller.

Slice crosswise in 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place overlapping slices diagonally across the pastry and place one slice of apple on each side of the arranged slices. That fills up the square.

Sprinkle apples evenly with the sugar and a bit of cinnamon if you like, then dot with butter.

Bake 30-40 minutes, until pastry is browned and edges of apples start to brown. Don’t worry. The apple juices will burn in the pan but tarts will be fine.

When tarts are done, heat apricot jelly with the Calvados until bubbly and brush the apples and pastry completely with the jelly mixture.

Loosen the tarts with a metal spatula so they don’t stick to the paper. Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.

Adapted slightly from Ina’s recipe.

Tip: Don’t toss peels –  make apple peel “tea”

Steep in boiling water with a cinnamon stick, then add honey to taste.