A pretty dessert to adorn your Christmas table. Warm, with all the flavours of an apple pie and more. The best part is, I made this out of leftovers. The effort is disproportionate to the outcome. I’ve mentioned shortcuts as well, so though it looks long and time-consuming, the steps are easy and it can be prepared ahead and assembled before serving. I used leftover gingerbread cookie dough for the base crust and used a bundt tin to get a wreath shape (little tricky to remove). You can easily make this with regular pie pastry, or ginger or digestive cookies as you would for cheesecake. Any pie /tart dish will do. The effect of a bunch of roses is beautiful by itself. The roses sit on a lovely custard filling.
Ingredients
- Makes one 8-inch size tart.
- For the Crust
- If You Have Leftover Gingerbread Cookie Dough or Pie Pastry (With A Tsp of Ginger Powder) You Can Use That. OR
- 1.5 Cups Ginger Biscuits or Digestive Cookies (About 150g Pack)
- 1/3 Cup White Sugar
- 6 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger; If Using Plain Cookies
- For the Custard Filling
- Instant Vanilla Custard / Pudding Made According to Package Instructions For 500ml Milk
- Add Pinch of Cinnamon
- OR to Make Your Custard
- 500 Ml Whole Milk
- 2-3 Tbsp Sugar (To Taste)
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Essence
- 3 Eggs (Substitute 2 Tbsp Cornflour for Eggless Version)
- 1/8 Tsp Cinnamon Powder
- For the Apple Roses
- 2 Medium Red Apples
- 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Tbsp Butter
- 1/4 Tsp Cinnamon Powder
Preparation
Prep: 60 minutes
Refrigeration: 120 minutes
- For the crust – Preheat oven to 200 deg c.
- Pulse together biscuits and sugar till powdered. Mix in the melted butter. Combine well. Transfer to your greased tart dish or tin, preferably with removable base. Or line the pan with foil or parchment to help remove it.
- Bake for 8 to 10 mins till set.
- If using pastry or cookie dough, line the tin similarly and bake till lightly brown and cook about 10-12 mins.
- Keep in mind that the cookie dough may puff up slightly due to baking powder in it, so prick it with a fork all over to keep it level.
- For the custard filling – make custard for setting, according to package instructions, adding a pinch of cinnamon.
- To make your custard, boil milk in a saucepan. Add sugar to taste. Add vanilla.
- Whisk the eggs separately in a small bowl. Remove 1/4 cup of the milk and add in a slow stream to the eggs, while continuously whisking.
- This will temper the eggs, preventing it from curdling or cooking. Add this mixture back to the saucepan, stirring till it is all combined and thickening, about 5 mins.
- If using cornflour, make a mixture of it with milk, without any lumps. Add this to the milk and stir well. Cook for about 5 mins till thick and bubbling.
- Take off the heat and allow to cool. Pour into crust once both are at room temperature. Store in refrigerator if planning to assemble later.
- For the roses – cut the apples in half and slice the apples as thin as you can, so the slices are flexible. You can use a mandolin slicer.
- Squeeze some lemon juice on them, while you slice the rest, to prevent browning.
- Put all the apples with the sugar, butter, cinnamon in a saucepan and cook for few minutes till slightly soft and bendable.
- For assembling – On the day you plan to serve it, keep the crust with custard ready.
- Start forming roses. Start with one slice for the central whorl, peel side up. One by one, arrange slices around it, overlapping the previous one. Place it standing into the custard. You can make them as large or small as you like.
- You can warm it in the oven before serving at 100 deg c for 8 to 10 mins, or serve refrigerated.
- Tastes wonderful with a warm caramel sauce, cream or ice cream.
