St. Thérèse of Lisieux, whose feast day is October 1st, called herself a “little flower” and followed a spiritual path of humble self-sacrifice that, in her autobiography “The Story of a Soul,” she called the Little Way of Spiritual Childhood. When Thérèse entered the Carmelite convent at Lisieux, France in 1888 at the age of 15, she longed to accomplish great deeds, but over time she realized that the Lord creates each flower for his purpose, each with a beauty of its own. “Our Lord’s love shines out just as much through a little soul who yields completely to His Grace as it does through the greatest,” Thérèse wrote.
Such complete yielding is no small thing, and Thérèse’s sainthood came from her pursuit of every opportunity for selflessness, including eating all foods set before her, which she admitted was the occasion of much mortification. She believed that souls, once trained, “are quite ready to admit that they would rather have a little bitterness than sugar,” and she eschewed worldly pleasures for a feast of “gentle, joyful love.” Nonetheless, her admirers occasionally make an apple tart for her feast day in the shape of a rose, a flower that she loved and refers to often in her autobiography.
The following recipe has four components and takes some skill to bring together, but the tart crust and pastry cream are staples in my kitchen and, once mastered, can be made again and again. (I like the extra pastry cream mixed with yogurt and fruit for breakfast. This version has rose water in it, but if you dislike floral flavors, it’s not necessary.) Nor did Thérèse scorn the domestic arts. In the Gospels, Jesus only condemned Martha, she wrote, for making a fuss about her work. So try it — and no fussing!
A Rose-Apple Tart for St. Thérèse
For the crust:
— 1 3/4 cups flour
— 2 teaspoons sugar
— 1/2 teaspoon salt
— Zest of 1 lemon
— 1 stick butter, cubed, cold
— 1 large egg, beaten, plus 1 tbsp water
For the pastry cream:
— 1/2 cup sugar
— 1/4 teaspoon salt
— 3 tablespoons corn starch
— 5 egg yolks
— 1 cup milk
— 1 cup cream
— 2 teaspoons vanilla
— 2 teaspoons rose water
For the filling and finishing:
— 3 good-quality, tart, red-skinned apples (Winesap or Jonagold are good)
— 2 tablespoons brown sugar
— 2 tablespoons white sugar
— 1/8 teaspoon salt
— 1 teaspoon cinnamon
— Juice of 1 lemon
— 1 cup apricot jam, plus 1 tablespoon hot water
Make the crust: 1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Combine the flour, sugar, salt and lemon zest in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, then pinch with your fingers until the dough resembles coarse cornmeal. Add the egg and water and stir, then crunch the dough with your hands to bring it together. 2. Place the dough between two large sheets of parchment paper. Roll out to a scant 1/4 inch thickness, then place the dough (still in the paper) in the freezer for 4 minutes to firm up. After this, it should be easy to peel off one sheet of parchment and invert the dough over a 9-inch, loose-bottomed tart pan. Peel off the other sheet of parchment, shape and trim. 3. Blind bake. Cool.
Make the pastry cream: 1. Combine sugar, salt and cornstarch in a small saucepan, whisking to combine. Add the egg yolks and whisk till light yellow and combined. 2. Add the milk and cream, turn on the heat to medium-high and stir constantly, using a rubber spatula to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom. The mixture should let off steam, but not boil. In about 3-4 minutes, the mixture should thicken quickly to a custard-like consistency, stiff enough to stay on the end of a spatula. 3. Add the vanilla and rose water and whisk out any lumps. Cool.
When both crust and custard are at room temperature, make the filling: 1. Stand each apple on its end and cut away 1/3 of the flesh, straight down near the core. Rotate and cut two more times; you should have a triangular core leftover and three flat-based pieces per apple. 2. Slice the pieces very thinly into a large bowl, using the medium setting on a mandolin: You want them to be pliant, but not paper-thin. 3. Add sugars, salt, cinnamon and lemon juice, and mix gently to avoid breaking the apple pieces.
Assemble and bake: 1. Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare the glaze by warming the jam in the microwave for 30 seconds, then sieving out the chunky parts and thinning with 1 tbsp hot water. Set aside. 2. Line the tart shell with a thin layer of pastry cream, followed by the apples, arranging by standing them straight up on the flat base and slightly overlapping, in concentric circles. 3. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 40 minutes, until the apples are softened. Glaze and cool.
