This is totally good. And totally from The Boat House.

OK, so I hadn’t really planned to post two recipes back-to-back. But this is a big deal. It’s a celebration Sunday. And that makes hanging out in the kitchen even more fun for me. Now, on most Sundays you’ll find a group of dear friends hanging out at CasaRock, enjoying good food, laughing and talking about life, and encouraging each other as we get to know more and more about God’s love and grace. But tonight, we’re having a party too. Shawn is having a birthday – plus he just knocked it out of the park preaching at our church (you can watch his message online). So we’re celebrating, with catfish and cornbread (again, watch his message online). For dessert, there’s Big Red birthday cake and vanilla ice cream.

And there’s something else – a rustic apple tart. A tart may a little fancy, given the menu. But to be perfectly honest, it’s just pie without the pie pan (because it appears I don’t own one). Of course it’s easy to make – and there’s a little lovely surprise of rosemary snuggled up next to those lovely apples. The crust is flaky and sugar-flecked, and the fragrance is – wow.

So take a moment to wish Shawn “happy birthday and way to go!” (you can leave a message here or tweet him at @shawnweekly). Or celebrate something awesome in your own life – like God’s grace and mercy. And be sure to cook up something fun while you’re at it!

RUSTIC APPLE-ROSEMARY TART

Makes two tarts. Each tart serves 6.

 

Lake o’ Lakes Butter Pastry

 

2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ t. salt
2/3 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
4 to 5 T. very cold water

 

Mix flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender, fork, or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in enough water with fork until the flour is just moistened. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a ball. Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled slightly.

 

Apple Rosemary Filling

 

6 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin slices
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
Dash salt

2 t. ground cinnamon
2 Tablespoons cornstarch

2 t. fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 large egg, beaten
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

Toss the apples in a bowl with the sugar, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, rosemary, and cornstarch. Set aside.

 

Putting it all together

 

Roll each round of dough to about 12 inches wide, making sure your surface is well-floured so you can remove it easily. Transfer the round to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat.

 

Divide the apple mixture evenly between the two rounds. Mound the apples in the center of the dough, leaving about 3” of dough around the edge. Gently fold the dough around the apple mixture, allowing those lovely apples to peek out in the center. Glaze the edges of the tarts with the egg and sprinkle generously with the sugar.

 

Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, then gently cover the rounds with aluminum foil for 15 minutes or until the apples are bubbly. Remove aluminum foil and finish baking for 10 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let sit for 20 minutes before serving. Take a bite and celebrate.

 

 

Thanks Martha Stewart Living and foodnessgracious.com for the inspiration!