Apple Tarts with Puff Pastry are one of the best, quick, and easy-to-make mini apple desserts that combine the fruit's sweetness and tartness with the flaky pastry crust.
Don't miss to check out summer strawberry tarts, napoleon or mille-feuille pastry, and palmiers or little heart cookies made using puff pastry sheets.
About the recipe
Apple tarts prepared using puff pastry sheets are one of the best simple and individual-sized desserts you can serve for family get together, potlucks, or picnics.
The apple filling for the tart can be made up to seven days in advance. The apple's sweetness and tartness, with the warm and aromatic flavor of cinnamon and sugar, complement the crispy and flaky crust very well.
If you love apple desserts, check out popular cheese danish made using puff pastry, flourless apple pudding, or halwa, apple coffee cake.
Ingredients
Puff pastry sheets: I have used store-bought puff pastry sheets from Pepperidge Farm®. You will find them in the freezer section of your grocery store.
Apple tart filling: You need apples, butter, salt, sugar, and cinnamon to make a delicious filling for a tart.
Roasted nuts: You can use roasted nuts like cashews, almonds, pistachios, or walnuts if you like the crunch, or simply skip it.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Step-by-step instructions
Thaw store-bought puff pastry sheets according to package instructions. I use pepperidge farm puff pastry sheets to make these tarts.
Make apple tart filling
- Peel and chop apples into small cubes.
- In a non-stick pan on medium-high heat, melt butter. Add chopped apples, brown sugar, and salt to this, and saute for about 8 mins.
- Then, add cinnamon powder and roasted nuts (optional) and saute for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the apple filling to cool to room temperature.
- You can store the apple filling in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Individual apple tarts squares
Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Dust the flour on your working surface and place one thawed puff pastry sheet.
- Lightly roll the sheets till they are about ½ inch longer on each side, using a rolling pin.
- Then, divide them into four pastry squares using a pizza cutter or a kitchen knife.
- Brush all edges of each square portion with egg wash - this gives the baked apple tart its golden brown color. You can also sprinkle some sugar.
- Fill the centers of each square with about two spoonfuls of prepared apple filling.
- Repeat the above steps for the remaining puff pastry sheet.
- Bake the tart for 20 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown and crispy.
- Let the tarts cool down for a few minutes before serving.
You can serve apple tarts as a breakfast with a cup of coffee, a quick snack, or as an after-meal dessert with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
Recipe FAQs
Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, golden delicious, Jonagold, pink lady®, Braeburn apples, and any variety of apples can be used. You can even mix the apples to create a blend of flavors.
The main difference lies in the crust and serving size. Tarts only have a bottom crust and are slightly thicker than the pie crust.
Yes. The tart with store-bought puff pastry will be light and flaky and gives excellent results plus, you don't even need a tart pan and can save time from making a homemade crust.
Puff pastry tarts taste the best when served the day it is made. You can make the tart filling a week in advance, and the puff pastry sheets can be thawed, cut into squares, and kept ready in the refrigerator a day before. Just the day you are ready to serve, assemble and bake.
Too much moisture in the filling can make your puff pastry tarts soggy
Also, ensure you bake the tart in the preheated oven as the recipe recommends. Once the tarts are baked, place them on a cooling rack rather than the baking sheet.
Once the tarts are baked, it is not a good idea to freeze the tarts. But you can freeze unbaked apple tarts. After assembling the tarts, place them in a freezer so that they become firm. Once they are frozen, transfer them to an airtight conatiner with each tart separated by parchment paper. You can store this for upto one month. Just thaw them in the refrigerator before baking.
More Puff Pastry Desserts
Recipe card
Easy Apple Tart with Puff Pastry | Mini Apple Tarts
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 box Puff pastry (2 sheets)
- 1 Egg (only for egg wash)
- 3 Apples
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- ½ cup Brown sugar
- Salt, a pinch
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ cup Roasted nuts (optional)
- All-purpose-flour, for dusting
Instructions
- Thaw store-bought puff pastry sheets according to package instructions. I use pepperidge farm puff pastry sheets to make these tarts.1 box Puff pastry
Make apple tart filling
- Peel and chop apples into small cubes.3 Apples
- In a non-stick pan on medium-high heat, melt butter. Add chopped apples, brown sugar, and salt to this, and saute for about 8 mins.2 tablespoon Butter, ½ cup Brown sugar, Salt, a pinch
- Then, add cinnamon powder and roasted nuts (optional) and saute for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the apple filling to cool to room temperature.1 teaspoon Cinnamon, ¼ cup Roasted nuts
- You can store the apple filling in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Individual apple tarts squares
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Dust the flour on your working surface and place one thawed puff pastry sheet.All-purpose-flour, for dusting
- Lightly roll the sheets till they are about ½ inch longer on each side, using a rolling pin.
- Then, divide them into four pastry squares using a pizza cutter or a kitchen knife.
- Place these pastry squares on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
- Brush all edges of each square portion with egg wash - this gives the baked apple tart its golden brown color. You can also sprinkle some sugar.1 Egg
- Fill the centers of each square with about two spoonfuls of prepared apple filling.
- Repeat the above steps for the remaining puff pastry sheet.
- Bake the tart for 20 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown and crispy.
- Let the tarts cool down for a few minutes before serving.
- You can serve apple tarts as a breakfast with a cup of coffee, a quick snack, or as an after-meal dessert with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
Video
Nutrition
This post was first published on Oct 2017 and sponsored by pepperidge farm puff pastry sheets. Updated with recipe maker, calorie information, and more details.
Lima Ekram
Cooking the apples before baking creates a wonderful topping! Looks absolutely delicious!
Biana
What a fabulous looking apple tart, a perfect fall dessert.
Amanda Wren-Grimwood
Love the flavours in these tarts. So delicious warm from the oven with ice cream.
TAYLER ROSS
We make these tarts every year and they are DELICIOUS! I look forward to them every fall!
Carrie Robinson
What a great dessert idea and just in time for apple season! 🙂 I love how elegant, yet simple there are.