This Caramel Apple Tart pairs tender, spiced apples with a buttery pie crust and a generous drizzle of homemade caramel. It’s over-the-top delicious and perfect for fall baking season!
Caramel apples and apple pies are two fall treats that just about everyone loves. But what if you combined the two into one epic dessert? Well, then you’d get this Caramel Apple Tart recipe!
It’s seriously easy and it’s also the perfect way to use up apples after a trip to your local U-pick orchard. (Be sure to add my Caramel Apple Nachos, Crock Pot Applesauce Recipe, and Apple Cinnamon Muffins to your must-make list too!)
Easy Caramel Apple Tart
If you’ve ever made a fruit galette before, the process for this Caramel Apple Tart is similar. Instead of making your own pie crust, you’ll buy a refrigerated pie crust to keep things easy-peasy. Then, you’ll mix up a quick filling of thinly sliced apples, sugar, spices, and lemon juice.
The mixture gets spooned into the crust, then the whole thing is baked until the apples are tender and the crust is golden brown. Finally, you’ll drizzle on a homemade caramel sauce. And that’s it!
Of course, if you want to make this Caramel Apple Tart even easier, you can skip the homemade caramel sauce and use store-bought. Just make sure you spring for a high-quality brand! You want it to be thick and creamy, not thin and syrupy.
Ingredients
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
For the Filling:
- Unbaked store-bought pie crust – Let this thaw before you use it.
- Granny Smith apples – Peeled and thinly sliced.
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Ground cloves
- Ground cinnamon
- Salt
- Egg
- Water
For the Caramel:
- Heavy cream – This is necessary for a thick, creamy caramel sauce; you can’t substitute a lower-fat dairy product.
- Light corn syrup
- Light brown sugar
- Unsalted butter – Let this soften at room temperature.
- Kosher salt
- Vanilla extract
Variations
- If you can’t find Granny Smith apples, feel free to use another variety of firm, sweet-tart apple like Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or Pink Lady.
- Add a handful of raisins, cranberries, or chopped pecans or walnuts to the filling for extra flavor and texture, or scatter chopped nuts on top of the caramel.
- Sprinkle coarse sugar over the egg wash for some sparkle and crunch.
- If you prefer, make your own homemade pie crust instead of using store-bought.
How to Make a Caramel Apple Tart
1. Prepare
Preheat your oven to 400ºF and unroll the pie crust dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
2. Make the Filling
Toss the apples with the flour, sugar, cloves, cinnamon, and salt, coating them evenly. Spoon the filling over the crust, leaving a two-inch edge. Fold the edges over the filling, pinching them together and leaving the middle uncovered.
3. Make the Egg Wash
Whisk the egg and water in a small bowl and brush the egg wash onto the crust.
4. Bake
Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbly.
5. Make the Caramel Topping
While the Caramel Apple Tart bakes, combine the cream, corn syrup, sugar, butter, and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan set over medium heat. Attach a candy thermometer to the side and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 245ºF. Stir in the vanilla extract.
6. Serve
Drizzle the tart with the caramel topping, slice, and serve with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
How to Store a Caramel Apple Tart
This tart is best served fresh, but it can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Be sure to cover it tightly so the caramel doesn’t dry out. Reheat individual slices in the microwave before serving.
You can also freeze the tart for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
FAQs
An apple pie is typically made with a double crust (pie dough on the bottom and top of the filling), while an apple tart has a single crust (just on the bottom).
Apple tarts also tend to have a higher ratio of fruit to dough, making them slightly lighter than pies. And because there’s no top crust, the filling is more exposed, which allows it to caramelize and get nice and bubbly in the oven.
This apple tart tastes like a cross between an apple pie and a caramel apple. The apple slices are usually sliced thin and tossed with sugar, spices, and lemon juice before being baked in a flaky pie crust. Once it’s out of the oven, a homemade caramel sauce is drizzled over the top.
A caramel apple is an apple that’s been coated in a layer of caramel. A candy apple is an apple that’s been dipped in hot sugar syrup, which hardens into a candy coating.
You can eat this tart hot or cold, but I prefer it warm so the caramel is still nice and gooey.
More Apple Desserts
Caramel Apple Tart
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 10” unbaked store-bought pie crust, thawed
- 2 large Granny Smith apples peeled and sliced thin
- 4 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Caramel
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 2 cups light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Unroll dough and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Toss the sliced apples with the flour, sugar, cloves, cinnamon, and salt. Spoon over crust to within 2 in. of edges. Fold up edges of crust over filling, leaving center uncovered.
- Whisk egg and water; brush over crust.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until the crust is golden and filling is bubbly.
- While the pie bakes, combine the cream, corn syrup, sugar, butter, and salt in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat and attach a candy thermometer to the side.
- Stirring constantly, cook the mixture until the thermometer reaches 245F. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Set aside.
- When the tart is finished, drizzle with caramel sauce and serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
