Carrot Tatin

Ingredients

For the crust

• 1 cup (165 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt
• 2/3 cup (135 g) chilled unsalted butter
• 1 ¼ tablespoon (18.75 ml) cold water

For the filling

• 1½ to 1¾ lbs (500 to 550 g) carrots or 4 cups of carrot ribbons
• ¾ cup (190 ml) rice vinegar
• ¼ cup (65 ml) Cointreau® type orange liqueur
• ¾ cup (160 g) brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) anise seeds
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt

Preparation

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl and place a grater in the center. Grate butter directly onto dry ingredients and mix. Pour in the water and work the dough into a ball. Flatten the dough, and place it on a plate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Peel the carrots with a paring knife or mandolin and cut into ribbons. Pour the rice vinegar, orange liqueur, brown sugar, anise seeds and salt into a pan, bring to a boil, lower heat to medium-high and reduce for about 5 minutes. The sweet-and-sour sauce should coat the back of a spoon. Toss the ribbons in with the sauce, set to medium-low, and stir for 10 to 15 minutes while cooking. The sauce will become more syrupy as it reduces and the carrots will caramelize.

Preheat oven to 350 °F (180 °C).

Butter 4 individual tart molds with removable bottoms. Separate the filling into each mold. Take the dough out from the refrigerator and roll with a rolling pin on a floured surface. Cut out 4 crusts about 1 inch (approx. 2 cm) larger than the diameter of the molds and spread one over each filling. Fold the excess dough inside the pan to form a rim. Make an incision on the crust and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Remove the crusts from the edge of the molds with a knife. Place a plate on top of the first pan and invert onto the plate. Remove carrot mix that may have remained stuck to the bottom of the pan and place on top of the tart. Repeat with remaining tarts.

Serve immediately.