Again, I turned to an old edition of Bon Appetit, a cover recipe that I had flagged two years ago and still hadn't taken the time to prepare. Looking at that October 2010 cover photo again, I knew that I had to finally make that Apple Torte with Breadcrumb Hazelnut Crust.
I knew going into it that this torte was going to be rather labor intensive and time consuming (the recipe does give a total time of 5 hours). I hoped the reward of spending five hours prepping, baking and cooling that the result would be incredible. Instead, it verged on the side of really good. Would I make it again exactly in the same way from start to finish? Probably not. Would I make it again using some of the components? Absolutely!
The apples were great. The use of hard cider adds such a great taste element that you don't get using water like in a traditional apple pie. Also, I loved incorporating hazelnuts into the crust; they were such a classy touch. If I make this tart again, I think I would mix it with flour (probably a gluten free mix) instead of breadcrumbs.
This was another one of those seemingly complicated explanations that Bon Appetit likes to give for their recipes, except in this case when you break it down, it is actually simple for anyone, even less experienced bakers, to recreate this torte at home.
Apple Torte with Breadcrumb and Hazelnut Crust
Apple Filling
Ingredients
2 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup hard apple cider or dry white wine
Directions
1. Arrange apples in even layer in heavy large skillet. Sprinkle with sugar, then pour apple cider over. 2. Cover and cook over medium heat until apples are tender, gently turning apples occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Uncover; cook until juices evaporate, frequently but carefully turning apples to keep wedges intact, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove from heat. Let apples cool completely in skillet.
DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Transfer to bowl. Cover; chill.
Crust
Ingredients
Crust
Ingredients
8 cups fresh breadcrumbs made from crustless Italian or French bread (finely ground in processor)
1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked
10 tablespoons sugar, divided
4 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt
3/4 cup non-dairy milk
6 tablespoons vegan butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, or solid coconut oil
1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked
10 tablespoons sugar, divided
4 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt
3/4 cup non-dairy milk
6 tablespoons vegan butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, or solid coconut oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread breadcrumbs on large rimmed baking sheet.
1. Bake until dried and light golden, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool. (*Bon Appetit says the 8 cups will bake down to 3 cups, but mine did not. If you have leftovers, reserve them for another use.)
2. Finely grind hazelnuts and 6 tablespoons sugar in processor. Add 3 cups breadcrumbs; process 5 seconds. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Stir in 4 tablespoons sugar, lemon peel, and salt.
2. Finely grind hazelnuts and 6 tablespoons sugar in processor. Add 3 cups breadcrumbs; process 5 seconds. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Stir in 4 tablespoons sugar, lemon peel, and salt.
3. Combine milk and butter, or oil in small saucepan. Stir over medium heat just until butter melts. Pour milk-butter mixture over breadcrumb mixture; stir until moistened (dough will be sticky). Let dough rest in bowl until liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
4. Transfer 1 cup dough to floured work surface. Gather into ball; flatten into disk. Press out to 9-inch round; wrap in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour for top crust.
5. Transfer remaining dough to work surface. Gather into ball; flatten into disk. Press disk onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom, pushing crust up to extend 1/2 inch above sides. Cover; chill at least 1 hour.
DO AHEAD Dough can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
(**Instead of making a full crust for the top layer, I opted to make a slightly thicker bottom layer with part of the dough and used the remaining to sprinkle over the top like a crumble.
To Bake the torte:
To Bake the torte:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Fill crust with apple mixture. Place top crust over filling (or sprinkle if making it crumble style). Fold bottom crust overhang up over top crust edges, pressing together to seal.
Bake torte until crust is deep golden and crust begins to separate from sides of pan (top crust may crack), about 1 hour. Cool in pan on rack at least 2 hours. Carefully remove sides from tart pan. Transfer to platter. Cut into wedges.
If desired, dust with powdered sugar. Serve with whipped cream, or drizzle with coconut cream.
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