I love a good dessert.  I especially love it when the dessert is simple to make yet stunning.  You know that kind of dessert, right?  The one that you can throw together for a fancy dinner party in 30 minutes or so but looks like you toiled over it for hours on end.  Yeah.  Those desserts.



We've all seen the Apple Rose Tarts photos and videos circulating around on Pinterest and Facebook.  When I saw them, what intrigued me most was how much it reminded me of Apfelstrudel--that famous Austrian dessert I've loved eating since I was a little child.  Making it was a family affair.  My Oma (grandmother) would make the dough while my mom would peel apples and I would slice them.  The dough would get stretched out over the kitchen table until it was onion skin thin then we'd brush it with melted butter, sprinkle on toasted bread crumbs and cover it all with apples, sugar, cinnamon and raisins.  The whole thing would get rolled up into a giant log, sealed and brushed with butter and stuck in the oven on a cookie sheet to bake until the dough turned golden brown and the inside was bubbling hot.  What came out of the oven was better than any apple pie I have ever tasted.  To this day, Apfel Strudel is still my favorite dessert; even my semi-homemade version with dried cranberries instead of raisins is pretty darn delicious!



But I digress.  The Apple Rose Tarts can be made with a muffin tin and a few simple ingredients:  puff pastry, apples, apricot preserves, cinnamon, lemon juice and water.



I've seen several recipes for Apple Rose Tarts, many calling for Red Delicious apples.  I've never understood why Red Delicious were called delicious.  They don't have any taste at all to me.  And making any kind of apple dessert calls for using tart apples, not sweeter ones.  My experience with making Apfel Strudel has always led me to using a mixture of Grannies and a tart red apple.  For the Apple Rose Tarts, you want that pretty red color of the skin but a tart apple to offset the sweeter instance of the apricot preserves.  I suggest using Pink Lady, Gala or Braeburn.



I also suggest using the Smucker's Low Sugar Apricot Preserves. (Update:  Smucker's stopped making their Low Sugar Apricot Preserves.  I suggest using a similar low sugar or organic apricot preserves.)  All other apricot preserves I've tasted are way too sweet and don't melt very well, and for this recipe, you need one that melts well.  If you can't find this particular brand, try to find one that does melt well and has a sweet-tart taste to it.  A dessert with way too much sweetness becomes unbalanced and heavy to the pallet.  And punch it up by adding lots of cinnamon.  I love using Saigon Cinnamon--it really kicks the cinnamon flavor up a notch!



Once you've made this dessert, you will want to make it again and again.  I know it has become one of my go-to desserts for parties.  Sometimes I just like to make them for no other reason than to eat them, no party required.  The combination of flaky puff pastry dough and the sweet-tartness of the apples and apricot preserves is delightful.  They are best warm out of the oven and you can even sprinkle them with powdered sugar or serve it a'la mode if you like. I've even placed a few cranberries in the center of the rose for added tartness and to give the appearance of "flower center."



For those that need a visual, here is a great video tutorial of making Apple Rose Tarts on YouTube.