French apple tart

Pulse the flour, powdered sugar and salt in a food processor to combine.

Cut fridge-cold butter into small pieces and pulse in until the butter is in pea-sized pieces, not sandy.

Whisk the water and egg yolk in a small bowl, drizzle over the flour mixture and pulse a couple of times until crumbly; add a couple of teaspoons more water if it does not come together.

Turn out onto a floured surface or pastry mat and work together with the palm of the hand in a sliding motion until it becomes a dough.

Roll on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a 12-inch circle; chill it if it softens.

Roll onto the pin and transfer to a 10-inch tart pan; press the dough into the corners and scalloped edge without stretching it, thickening the sides. Trim level with a sharp knife.

Freeze 45 minutes, until solid.

Variation: Roll the scraps to about an eighth of an inch, cut a circle, press into a tart ring on a mat, trim and freeze for a mini tart, filled with one portion of apple, sugar and butter.

Line the frozen shell with a frilled round of parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Set on a rimmed baking sheet and blind bake at 400 for 15 minutes.

Peel the apples. Cut the flesh from the core in two large and two small pieces with flat bottoms, then slice thinly, keeping each section together.

Remove the shell, reduce the oven to 350, take out the parchment and weights and let the shell cool.

Stir the granulated sugar and cinnamon together. Melt the butter.

Sprinkle one tablespoon of cinnamon sugar evenly over the shell. Fan the apple sections and arrange them tightly in a parquet or checkerboard pattern, filling gaps with small pieces.

Drizzle the melted butter over the apples, spreading with a brush if wanted, then sprinkle over the remaining cinnamon sugar.

Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, until the apples are bubbling.

Unmold onto a stand when cool enough to touch. Brush liberally with apricot jam melted in the microwave for gloss and to keep the apples from drying out.