Apple Chestnut Tart With Salted Caramel

This elegant tart layers a crisp butter crust with nutty chestnut cream, caramelized apples, and salted caramel.

By Laila Ibrahim
Published December 11, 2025
A caramel apple tart with decorative crust garnished with nuts placed on a red table setting

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano
In This Recipe

Why It Works

  • Keeping the butter cold during mixing limits gluten development and creates a tender, flaky crust.
  • Chilling the shaped tart shell before baking firms the fats, so the crust hold its shape in the oven instead of slumping.

When the holidays roll in, desserts tend to swing big and buttery. This tart does that with a sleek touch, layering gently spiced apples over a smooth, nutty chestnut cream set into a crisp crust. Salted caramel drips over the top and flaky sea salt cuts through the sweetness. It all adds up to a tart that looks lavish and tastes rich, without feeling heavy.

How to Perfect the Crust

This recipe was developed in our Birmingham, Alabama, test kitchen by our colleague Tricia Manzanero Stuedeman. She built the tart from the ground up to stay crisp, structured, and cleanly sliceable under a rich filling.

Achieving that structure begins with the crust. It comes together quickly in the food processor, where cold butter is cut into the dry ingredients before the yolk-and-cream mixture is added. Keeping the butter cold at this stage is key: Solid fat limits how much water can hydrate the flour, which limits gluten development and helps the crust bake up tender rather than tough.

Once rolled and fitted into a tart pan with a removable collar, the dough goes straight into the freezer. Chilling the dough fully firms the fats before baking, helping the crust hold its height and defined edges rather than shrinking or slumping in the oven. To further ensure a flat base and sturdy sides as the dough sets, the crust is blind-baked under foil and pie weights. Once the crust's structure is set, the weights come off so the shell can finish baking uncovered and stay fully crisp beneath the chestnut cream.

A Chestnut Filling That Stays Light

Chestnut cream (crème de marrons in French) is a sweetened chestnut purée with a smooth, spreadable texture. Also called chestnut spread, it's a natural partner for apples and caramel. But chestnut cream on its own it can be heavy. Tricia found the best way to balance its rich flavor was to fold it into a lightly sweetened, vanilla-scented whipped cream. After it's beaten, the vanilla whipped cream is stirred into the chestnut spread in stages so the mixture stays light instead of compacting. Once spread into the fully cooled crust, the filling chills just long enough to set. That brief rest gives the chestnut layer enough structure to support the apples on top, so the slices stay clean and the layers stay distinct.

Sweetened chestnut cream (also sold as crème de marrons) is available at Italian and French specialty stores, well-stocked supermarkets, and online; Tricia recommends the Clément Faugier brand, which is the easiest to find in the US.

A slice of caramelized apple tart on a red plate garnished with chestnut cream and paired with a gold fork

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

The Apple and Caramel Layer

For the apple layer, the goal is fruit that softens without collapsing and keeps its flavor as it cooks gently in the caramel. A firm, sweet-tart apple is ideal here—one that can handle heat without turning mealy and brings enough acidity to keep the sugars from tasting flat. The slices cook gently in butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, with the pot covered at first so the apples steam in their own juices. 

Once the apples are just fork-tender, the lid comes off so moisture can cook away and the sugars concentrate into a glossy caramel. Salt keeps the fruit and caramel from tasting flat. It lifts the sweetness while adding contrast, so the result is rich rather than cloyingly syrupy.

Assembling the Tart

Once the chestnut cream filling is fully set, arrange the apple pieces evenly over the surface in whatever decorative pattern you prefer, then drizzle the reserved caramel lightly over them so it coats rather than floods. To finish, chopped toasted or candied pecans add a final layer of crunch, while flaky sea salt pairs well with the caramel and warm spices. Every slice has clean, generous layers—a crisp, buttery shell; a smooth chestnut cream; tender spiced apples; and just enough salted caramel to tie it all together.

This recipe was developed by Tricia Manzanero Stuedeman; the headnote was written by Laila Ibrahim.

Recipe Details

Apple Chestnut Tart With Salted Caramel

Prep 40 mins
Cook 55 mins
Cooling and Freezing Time: 3 hrs 30 mins
Total 5 hrs 5 mins
Serves 10
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Ingredients

For the Crust:

  • 1 large egg yolk

  • 1 tablespoon (15 ml) heavy cream

  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 191 g all-purpose flour (6 3/4 ounces; 1 1/2 cups), plus more for sprinkling

  • 20 g (2 tablespoons) powdered sugar

  • 13 g (1 tablespoon) light brown sugar

  • 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (113 g), cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled

  • Cooking spray

For the Chestnut Cream:

  • 1 cup (240 ml) heavy cream

  • 30 g (3 tablespoons) powdered sugar

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/8 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

  • 1 (17 1/2-ounce) can chestnut spread (such as Clement Faugier)

For the Caramelized Apples:

  • 57 g (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter

  • 2 Honeycrisp apples (454 g; 1 pound) , scrubbed, cored, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

  • 71 g light brown sugar (2 1/2 ounces; 1/3 cup)

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/4 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • Water, as needed

  • Chopped toasted or candied pecans, for serving

  • Flaky sea salt (such as Maldon), for serving

Directions

  1. For the Crust: In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk, cream, and vanilla until combined; set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse flour, powdered sugar, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon until combined, 3 to 4 pulses. Scatter butter over flour mixture and pulse until butter resembles small peas, 4 to 5 pulses. With food processor running, add egg yolk mixture, processing until dough just comes together, about 30 seconds. Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Let dough stand at room temperature until slightly softened before using, 10 to 15 minutes.

    Preparing tart dough in a food processor with ingredients and formed dough disk shown

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

  2. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll dough into a 12-inch round (about 1/8-inch thick). Carefully transfer dough to a 9-inch round fluted tart pan with a removable bottom, gently pressing dough over the bottom and up the sides, extending dough by about 1/2 inch past the rim. Gently press and smooth any cracks, as needed. Using a small paring knife, trim dough so that it's flush with top edge of pan, using excess trim to patch any holes or thin spots, if needed. Using fork, prick dough bottom all over. Freeze, uncovered, until firm, about 30 minutes.

    A round pastry being prepared in a tart pan with a knife trimming excess dough

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

  3. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Coat a sheet of aluminum foil, large enough to cover the entire pie, with cooking spray. Transfer foil, greased side down, over chilled crust and fill evenly with pie weights or dried beans. Transfer tart pan to a rimmed baking sheet and bake until crust is golden around the edges, about 25 minutes. Remove pie weights and foil. Continue to bake until crust is golden and firm, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and allow to cool completely, about 20 minutes.

    A baked tart crust on a baking tray

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

  4. For the Chestnut Cream: While crust is cooling, in a medium bowl, stir chestnut spread until smooth. In a large bowl with a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat heavy cream, powdered sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes. Fold cream mixture into chestnut spread in 3 additions. Set aside, uncovered, at room temperature until ready to use.

  5. To Assemble Tart: Pour chestnut cream into cooled crust. Using an offset spatula or flexible rubber spatula, spread chestnut cream into an even layer. Loosely cover tart and chill until chestnut cream is set, about 1 hour.

    A completed tart with a smooth cream layer in a ridged tart pan viewed from above

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

  6. For the Caramelized Apples: While tart chills, set a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl. In a large Dutch oven or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until apples are just fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring frequently, until apples are softened and liquid is slightly thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Pour mixture through prepared strainer. Transfer apples to a large bowl and set liquid aside at room temperature until ready to use. Refrigerate apples, uncovered, until completely cooled, about 30 minutes.

    Cooked apple slices in a red pot with a spatula preparation for a caramel tart

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

  7. To Serve: Remove metal collar from tart pan, and transfer tart to a platter or cake plate. Arrange cooled caramelized apples evenly in a decorative pattern over chestnut cream. Whisk reserved sauce to recombine, adjusting thickness with water, 1/4 teaspoon at a time, if needed, to achieve a pourable consistency. Drizzle sauce over tart. Top with toasted or candied pecans and flaky sea salt. Slice into portions and serve.

    A caramel apple tart on a plate with a spoon adding topping

    Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

Special Equipment

Food processor, rolling pin, 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom, wire rack, stand mixer, off-set spatula, fine-mesh strainer, hand mixer or stand mixer, large Dutch oven or saucepan

Notes

Sweetened chestnut cream (also sold as crème de marrons) is available at Italian and French specialty shops, well-stocked grocery stores, and online. In the US, Clément Faugier is the most widely available brand.

Make-Ahead and Storage

The dough can be made, shaped into a disc, and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Allow to slightly soften at room temperature, about 15 minutes, before using. 

The crust can be baked, cooled, and stored tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 1 day. 

The tart is best enjoyed the day it's made while the crust is still crisp, but leftovers can be safely refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
391 Calories
27g Fat
34g Carbs
4g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 10
Amount per serving
Calories 391
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 27g 35%
Saturated Fat 15g 75%
Cholesterol 84mg 28%
Sodium 212mg 9%
Total Carbohydrate 34g 12%
Dietary Fiber 2g 5%
Total Sugars 15g
Protein 4g
Vitamin C 2mg 10%
Calcium 43mg 3%
Iron 1mg 7%
Potassium 131mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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