Easy Apple Pecan Tart Recipe

This Easy Apple Pecan Tart recipe is a simple homemade dessert that looks like it came from a French baker's oven, but you can bake this rustic tart yourself. What you get is a buttery flaky crust and fresh apples baked with a sprinkling of sugar, butter, vanilla, and pecans. That's it, a tart that is rustic, simple, and delicious. 

Even though I love a good slice of apple pie with cinnamon and spices, sometimes all the spices overwhelm the apples themselves. For this recipe, you are getting the full flavor of the apples with just sugar, butter, and vanilla for flavor. Because the apples aren't precooked they stay a little firm after baking for some nice texture. 

This dessert is totally simplistic in flavor. It is similar to an apple galette but since it's a long rectangle and not round I am calling it a tart.

Ingredients

What apples are good for baking?

It depends - if you need a sweet or a tart apple

• Braeburn – mildly sweet, these apples stay firm when baked
• Cortland – slightly tart and juicy, perfect for baking
• Fuji – mildly sweet and a little tart, they are crisp and firm
• Gala - a crispy sweet mild-flavored apple
• Golden Delicious - sweet with a mellow flavor, a perfect baking apple
• Granny Smith – a tart apple
• Honey Crisp – a nice sweet juicy apple
• Jonathan – tart with a spicy flavor
• Jonagold - a bit tangy and sweet

In this apple tart, Granny Smith apples are mixed with a sweet apple such as Gala.  Both stay nice and firm when baked, and deliver just the right flavor and texture to make this tart a favorite dessert recipe.  You can always use just one type of apple too, I just like to mix things up.  

If you are looking for something new to bake you’ve got to try these Spiced Apple Cupcakes that are topped with a creamy Maple Buttercream frosting.

Using a double-crust pie dough

This tart recipe takes a basic double pie crust recipe.  I always make a double-crust pie recipe for several reasons. 

 When I need a pie crust I want to make sure I have plenty to roll out and fit properly in my pie or tart pan.  Using a recipe for a double-crust will result in you having extra dough left but I have found a single crust many times just doesn't give me enough dough to roll out and work with.  So....it's up to you on using a single or double-crust recipe.

 Having extra dough allows you to make some other delicious treats like these Jelly Roll Pie Tarts. These tarts are simply pie dough filled with your favorite jam or jelly.   If I don't make these tarts my kids start complaining.

Galettes are also perfect for using leftover pie crust and this Apple Cranberry Galette is so easy to make.

I realized if I am making pie dough I might as well make a double batch and what I don't use I can freeze the leftovers. If you have small pie plates, this leftover dough is perfect to use for mini pies and small galettes.

My preference for using pie dough over using puff pastry is the pie dough holds up better. Puff pastry is excellent when eaten warm, but after it cools the puffiness of the pastry collapses and just loses all its goodness. 

Let's bake

Step 1. Make the tart dough using this recipe for How to Make A Flaky Pie Crust.  It is best to let the dough chill first for an hour.

Step 2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  For this recipe, you need a large baking sheet.

Step 3. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a little larger than 18" x 6" and cut the sides to make them straight. Then roll the dough up on the rolling pin and transfer to a baking sheet.

Step 4. Roll a ½" of the sides of the dough in to form a rim and then press down with fork tines to seal. If you have room in the refrigerator, place the dough there to chill while preparing the apple

Step 5. Place thinly sliced apple slices in a bowl and toss with the sugar and vanilla.

Step 6. Arrange the apple slices side-by-side on the tart dough.

Step 7. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the tart and scatter the pecans over the top, and tucking pieces in the nooks and crannies. Return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes.

Step 8. Remove the tart and let cool. Meanwhile, heat the apricot jam for 30 seconds in the microwave, then brush the top of the tart with the jam.

Step 9. Slide the tart onto a serving platter and cut it into slices. Serve warm and enjoy!

This tart is a thing of beauty. The apples are caramelized, the pecans are toasted and the apricot jam lends a bit of shine. The long rectangle shape is elegant and is easy to cut and serve. Just slice between the rows of apples and make a nice little square.

Baking Tips

• Try to slice your apples all the same size and rather thin, this way to stack nicely.
• Wait to put the pecans on the tart near the end of baking, otherwise, they will burn if you add them at the beginning of baking.
• This tart bakes for 45 minutes, watch the crust to make sure it is not getting too brown.

Equipment for baking

Normally I use rimmed baking sheets for my cookies and other baked goods, but for this tart, I use these rimless baking sheets which make it easy to slide this tart off onto a platter for serving.  

More tart recipes to try

• During the summer when peaches are at their ripes try this Peach Almond Tart with Vanilla Bean, it is a family favorite.
• Another summer favorite is these Strawberry Curd Tarts.
• Pecan Tassies are a classic pastry to serve during the holidays, but we like them all through the year.  They are delectable bite-sized treats.
• For the chocolate lover, this Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart is AMAZING. It's rich, silky smooth, and topped with whipped cream rosettes.

Plus something nutty

Bake our favorite Bourbon Pecan Pie for a decadent slice of pie goodness.

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Recipe

First Published: Oct. 4, 2014... Last Updated: Jan. 15, 2021

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About Jere’

From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending.  Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing both sweet and savory recipes with all my baking friends.