This elegant vegan French apple tart looks deceptively elaborate but all you need to make it are five ingredients and 15 minutes prep time. Thinly sliced apples are arranged in a single layer on a golden, crispy puff pastry base, then brushed with a glossy apricot glaze for a beautiful bakery-style finish.
This easy style of tart aux pommes lets the natural deliciousness of the apples shine while eliminating the need to make a pie crust. Arrange the apple slices in overlapping rows for a rectangular tart or in concentric circles for a round tart. It is an effortless fall and holiday dessert that can be served at room temperature, either by itself or with a dollop of vegan vanilla ice cream.
There are recipes so complex that only a genius can pull them off. And then there are recipes so ridiculously simple and yet so amazing that they look like a genius pulled them off. This elegant vegan French apple tart falls into that latter category.
You don't have to be an expert baker to make this apple tart. And even if you haven't made a pie or tart before, you're still good, because this recipe simplifies the toughest part of pie-making: the crust.
I love making vegan pies from scratch, like this gorgeous vegan apple pie, but I also love it when I can simplify the recipes I already love. I showed you before how to use puff pastry creatively in recipes that require a pie crust, like my vegan mushroom pot pie, vegan pot pie and vegan leek and potato tart. The great thing about puff pastry is that it guarantees a great look because it bakes up so golden and very pretty. Plus, it takes the guesswork out of crust-making.
Many store bought puff pastries are vegan although be sure to double-check the label because some do contain butter. If you have some time you can make your own puff pastry with the recipe I shared as part of this vegetable puffs recipe. I also have instructions for making whole-wheat puff pastry on the blog!
For the no-fuss filling I riffed off an Ina Garten recipe. I used turbinado sugar and I also added amaretto liqueur to the apricot glaze that gets brushed all over the apples for more delicious flavor. If you want to keep the tart alcohol-free for kids use water or apple juice instead of amaretto.
Why you will love this French apple tart
- Just five ingredients: Apples, puff pastry, sugar, apricot jam and either water or amaretto liqueur.
- Only 15 minutes of hands-on prep: You just need to roll out the puff pastry to fit the pan and slice the apples.
- No complicated filling: Just mix the apples with the sugar, arrange them in the puff pastry base and brush with the apricot glaze.
- Perfect for entertaining: Although simple this tart looks gorgeous and makes a stunning presentation. You can make it ahead and serve at room temperature.
- Customizable glaze: If you don't want to use amaretto just use water or apple instead for an alcohol-free tart.
More vegan apple desserts
- Vegan apple tart
- Vegan skillet apple pie
- Vegan tarte tatin
- Vegan apple strudel
- Or browse all of my apple recipes.
Recipe card
Vegan French Apple Tart
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 4 apples (about 1.5 pounds. I used gala apples. Core, halve, then cut the apples into ¼th-inch slices. I leave the skins on.)
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup apricot jam
- 2 tablespoon amaretto liqueur or water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Mix the apples with the sugar in a large bowl.
- Roll out the puff pastry sheet to fit in your tart pan. I used a 11 X 7 inch rectangular pan with a removable bottom, but a round one would work too.
- Place the puff pastry inside the pan and press in the sides to fit to the pan. You can use a rolling pin to cut any overhanging pastry dough, or tuck it under the edges to get a neat look. With a fork, prick the dough all over to keep it from rising in the pan.
- Layer the sliced apples inside the puff pastry in a decorative pattern, tucking any small pieces into the corners to ensure the surface is evenly covered. If you're working with a round pan, you can layer them in concentric circles.
- Place the tart on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any juices that spill over, and then in the oven. Bake 45 minutes, turning around once halfway through baking. Remove to a rack.
- Heat the apricot jam with the water or liqueur in a small saucepan until it's runny enough to work with. Brush on top of the apples once the tart is out of the oven. If your pan has a removable bottom, unmold before the tart cools down completely because any running juices could cause the pastry to stick to the pan. Continue cooling on a rack. Slice and serve at room temperature.
Nutrition Information
To print recipe card without images, uncheck "instruction images" after clicking the "print recipe" button.
Top tips
- Arrange the apples in a single layer of overlapping slices. This is a thin, French-style tart rather than a deep-dish apple pie.
- Toss the apples gently with the sugar. Use firm baking apples like gala, golden delicious and Braeburn so they don't break as you are tossing them with the sugar and hold their shape during baking. Arrange them in the pan right after you mix so they don't have time to release their juices.
- Wait for the tart to cool to room temperature. This ensures the filling has had time to set and it won't be runny.
Volker Hetzer says
Have it in the ove nright now. First impression:
* Needs at least twice the amount of apples (mine aren't small, diameter is about 8.5 cm) to look like in the picture.
* Mixing in the sugar breaks many of the apple pieces, making any sort of arrangement difficult. A hint of how to achieve this mixing properly woul be greatly appreciated.
Vaishali Honawar says
Is it possible you used a larger tart pan? Mine is 11 inches by 7 inches. Also this is not meant to be a pile of apples in the pastry crust - it's a single layer of apples arranged decoratively.
To mix the apples just use a gentler touch. Use your hands if necessary and just toss them lightly until everything is mixed.
Volker says
Thank you for your reply!
My second attempt (fewer apples, leaving a bit of space between the pieces, also a thin metal form) went great!
H says
This was great!! So simple and classic. I skipped the apricot jam step (too lazy!) but added a couple of teaspoons of whiskey in with the apples & sugar before baking.... super tasty!
Vaishali Honawar says
So happy you loved it!
MaryPat says
I have a bag of macintosh apples sitting in my kitchen. I've never attempted making apple anything before so I was wondering if macintosh would be a good variety to use for this tart recipe? Thanks!
Vaishali says
Hi, Macintosh apples would work very well here!
Ida Moser says
So easy and oh so fabulous! My tart pan is smaller so I used 3 apples and I halved the sugar. Kept everything else the same and no disappointments. Husband had multiple servings and I’m all about making this again soon. Great recipe!!!
Vaishali says
Ida, so happy you made it!
Saheli says
Love it....must try!
Vaishali says
Hope you do!