For the beginning of the products: Apples, as usual, it is better to take sour or sweet and sour. I have one "Bramley" and one "Granny Smith". Of the Russian varieties are perfect Antonovka. Even 40-50 years ago shortcrust pastry did not in butter, and meat fats, such as white or melted fat. Nowadays, this method has again gained some popularity. Therefore, in some recipes, Apple tart uses a combination of fat or oil with fat, usually 50/50. They say that pastry is the fat obtained gentle. I haven't tried, don't like, but maybe someone wants to do on fat. Pie is closed and quite thin, baked on a flat plate or in any suitable shallow dish with a diameter of 20-23cm. Ideal - something cast iron because cast iron cookware is well baked through the bottom and there is no need to first separate the furnace bottom crust. I have a very handy pan for the grill (sides 1.5 cm in height). You can take the inverted lid from the cauldron, if it is relatively flat. Another option is something out of thick ceramic or heat-resistant glass, for example, pot lid Pyrex (they still like to cook in the microwave). If anything like you have, bake in ordinary earthenware plate, not thin, so may burst.

Sift the flour on the table, add the diced cold butter (you can pre-briefly put in the freezer). Chop with a knife, then RUB with hands until coarse crumbs. (If you don't want to do the dough by hand, place all in a food processor and punch in a few brief methods. The main thing is not to overdo it, not to give gluten to develop too much, otherwise the dough will be tough.)

Add in flour, sugar and salt, mix well. (Sugar, by the way, the dough can not put this tart often baked from unleavened dough. It's a nice contrast between the savoury dough, sour-sweet filling and sugar sprinkles.)

To separate the protein from egg yolk, egg white aside. Yolk mix in a glass with 2 tablespoons ice water (I had previously removed from the freezer 2 ice cube as he struggled with the flour, they melt). It is possible some of the water replaced with vodka or brandy, it's not Irish, but the dough will benefit from it. Pour this mixture into the flour and lightly mash (do not knead) until the dough come together in kom. If someone does not work, add water a tablespoon. Do not overdo it: better to have the dough was a little dry than watery.

Roll the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap (or put in a container with a tight lid) and put it in the refrigerator to rest for 15 minutes (can be longer). (Any cookie dough freeze well, so it can be prepared in advance.)

After 15 minutes, remove dough from refrigerator, divide into two slightly unequal parts. A large part of the spread on a silicone Mat, plastic wrap or a sheet of paper for baking and roll out to a thickness no more than 5mm. I got about 3mm. to Turn into a form, gently press under the sides and bend towards the bottom excess. Not yet to trim. All the dough back in the fridge for 20-30 minutes (can be longer).

Apples are cleaned, cut into a bowl, add sugar, spices and 1 tbsp flour, mix well. The slices should be thin, but large, my small.

Remove the form with the dough from the refrigerator. Spread the dough on the filling to flatten. Filling quite a lot, I had figured to lay layers, otherwise would not go to. However, I do not advise to take less apples, because when baking they osyadut.

Roll out second half of dough the same thickness as the first. In the middle cut a small hole for steam output. Edges of the bottom layer of dough generously lubricate the protein. Cover the top layer of the stuffing and squeeze well region.

The edge trim. You can decorate, clutching something round (with the tip of a table knife, a spoon handle, etc.). I was in a hurry and, frankly, forgot.

If desired, trim dough can be rolled out and cut out to decorate them. Grease top of cake with white. If you make jewelry, first lubricate the pie, then lay out the jewelry and brush a second time.

Bake at 180C (if the oven with oil, then 160C) for about 30-40 minutes. The willingness of cake to check, pointing to the Apple with a knife through the hole for a couple. If the apples are soft and dough is flushed, the cake is ready. If the dough darkens too quickly, and the apples are not yet ready, cover it with baking paper or foil. It is desirable that the top of the cake came out not very dark.

The finished cake sprinkle with fine sugar or powder. If sugar, you need to sprinkle the cake still warm, otherwise the sugar will fall. If powder, the cake should be cold, otherwise it melts.

While cake cools, make the Irish coffee. The number of ingredients in the list above I gave for reference, it all depends on the volume of your dishes, but the estimated ratio of coffee to whiskey - 4:1. Whiskey for the coffee, it is advisable to take Irish, if you get, it is softer than other types. The most common sort of Irish whiskey - Jameson. Still have a Tullamore D. E. W. and different varieties of Bushmills, other brands are more niche, and on the international market is not so easy to find. If you do not find the Irish, it does not matter, any good whiskey will do. In my local supermarket for Valentine's day. Patrick dare, the entire Irish shelf, so I have Glenfiddich (Scotch). Coffee should be strong, but not espresso, not Americano and not Turks, because coffee should be in harmony with the smooth taste of whiskey and not to knock it off. Will fit any of filtered or French press. I brewed in a press 2-3 tsp per 180-200 ml of water. Cream, contrary to popular view, you do not have to swim an iceberg on top of the coffee. Irish coffee is for drinking, not for biting milk fat. The inventor of Irish coffee Joe Sheridan cream do not beat (whisk in 40 years was not a daily thing), and just used very thick. But there is one "but": if the cream does not whip to their pour over coffee without mixing, need some skill. Therefore, in our time, in most cases, beat them slightly, but only until thick, they should not lose fluidity. Total beating time should be manually (this is important). Sugar is better to take brown, ideally, the dark varieties (for example, muscovado). But white is also nice. Important: don't cut number. First, at low concentrations of sugar in coffee creamers can drown. Second, the flavor of the whiskey is to some extent masked by sweetness, and 1 tsp of sugar you're there just feel. Glassware for coffee, ideally, should be transparent, with thick walls. It is possible to do in crystal or carved glass, just warm the glass with hot water (from the tap, not boiling) so that it is not cracked. Prepared coffee should resemble a pint of Guinness - dark, but slightly transparent (not cloudy), with white foam on top.

For a start, whip the cream. If you serve the tart with cream, beat all at once, for coffee and tarte, because with a large number easier to work with. The cream must be very cold. Need to whisk by hand, until lightly thickened (2-3 minutes). If conducted on the surface with a whisk stretches easy track, beat is no longer necessary.

Utensils for coffee it is recommended to heat (although personally I'm not much of a difference you see). To do this, while brewed coffee, fill a glass of boiling water (only if the glass is not carved). Pour the water, put in a glass of sugar and fill it with coffee 3/4 full. Make sure the sugar is all dissolved (muscovado stubborn).

Add whiskey. Irish - 3 tablespoons per 180-200 ml of coffee, the other can take a little less. Take a tablespoon, place it at the edge of the glass just above the coffee level, convex side up. Carefully pour the cream on the spoon to a height of 1-3 cm in This process I could not remove: my hands were full. The remaining cream until return to the refrigerator. The top can be decorated with grated nutmeg.

If serving the tart with cream, add the sugar and briefly whisk again until soft peaks form. If you don't of coffee into the cream to add a little whiskey or liqueur "Baileys". In this embodiment, it is desirable to serve the tart is still warm (or warmed up). I put the whiskey-soaked raisins.

For custard, combine the milk with cream. Here you can take the cream with different fat content: if they are 18-25 per cent, take 60 ml of cream and 250 ml of milk. If oily, then 30 ml cream and 280 ml of milk. If you have a vanilla pod, cut it in half lengthwise, seeds and vystrelit all together add to milk mixture. If vanillin or vanilla essence, their easier to add them to the yolks. Milk mixture to heat until almost boiling (but do not let boil).

While the heated milk, mix well yolks with sugar. Whipping is not necessary, because, unlike cake frosting, the cream needs to be fluid and excess air us it is not needed. Add the starch and vanilla flavoring, stir again. Brew this mixture the hot milk with continuous stirring.

Return all to the pan. It is advisable to strain through a sieve to remove excess air bubbles. Heat the mixture on low heat until lightly thickened (3-5 minutes). The key word is "easy": the cream is a liquid, fluid, not like the custard for pies and cakes.

The cream cool slightly, can be a bit of whisking to smooth. Pour the hot cream tart and serve, or pour the custard into a gravy boat and serve separately from the tart. He tart in this embodiment can be warm or cold as you like. If the cream before serving time to cool down, you can tart with the cream heat in microwave or oven.