French apple tart, tart-sweet with duck ham

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 900 g sour apples (Granny Smith or similar)
• 100 g dried duck breast (Magrets de canard, séché), sliced
• 80 g sugar, preferably dark cane sugar, but any other will do
• 1 roll of topping dough
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 dashes lemon juice

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 40 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

sophisticated and yet so simple

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and place a tart or shallow cake tin in the oven. Quarter, core, and peel the apples, then cut the quarters into not-too-thick slices. If desired, drizzle with a squeeze of lemon juice to prevent them from sticking. Remove the fat from the lardons, the duck ham, and tear the slices into smaller pieces (2-3). Gently melt the fat in a pan, then add the sugar. Heat gently, stirring constantly, until the sugar begins to turn a honey color. Then add the apples and simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add a small pinch of salt. Towards the end of the 10 minutes, add the duck ham, gently fold in, and let it warm through briefly. Remove the pan from the heat and let the contents cool briefly. Remove the pan from the oven and pour the contents of the pan into the dish, leaving about 1 cm free from the edges. Place the puff pastry on top and fold the edges inward to ensure the apples are well covered. To do this, trim the chilled puff pastry beforehand (tin size + 1.5-2 cm for each edge). Now bake the tin with the puff pastry for 20-30 minutes on the middle rack, with the apples at the bottom. The tart is ready when the puff pastry is a good golden brown and no white remains. Remove the tin from the oven. Let the tart cool for a moment, then turn it out onto a large platter, board, or plate, divide it into portions, and enjoy. This wonderful tart can be served as a sophisticated main course or as a warm appetizer. The little effort is rewarded with excellent flavor. The recipe is easy to adapt by using bacon, wild ham, or any other type of ham with a fat edge instead of the duck ham. It always tastes different.