Classic Apple Dream Tart – A Winning Teatime & Dessert Recipe

Warm, golden, and soaked in sauce — this apple dream tart is comfort food at its finest.

Few desserts capture old-fashioned home baking quite like a classic apple dream tart. Simple pantry ingredients come together to create a soft, golden batter studded with tender tart apples, then finished with a decadent sauce that soaks right in. This is the kind of recipe passed down through South African kitchens — easy enough for a weeknight bake, yet impressive enough for guests.

Imagine pulling a golden apple tart from the oven, still warm, and drenching it in a silky sauce that seeps into every layer. Served as a dessert with ice cream and custard, or sliced up for afternoon tea, this apple dream tart recipe is endlessly versatile. Better yet, this version gives you a choice between two classic sauces — a creamy caramel-style sauce or a rich brandy sauce — so you can make it your own every time.

Ingredients

For the Tart:

• 1 cup sugar
• tablespoons butter
• 3 large eggs, if eggs are small use 4
• 1 cup self-raising flour (if using plain flour, increase the baking powder to 1 teaspoon)
• 2 ml baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• ¼ cup (60 ml) milk
• 1 small tin (385 g) tart apples, unsweetened

For the Cream Sauce (Option 1):

• 1 tin cream
• 1 cup sugar

For the Brandy Sauce (Option 2):

• 1½ cups sugar
• ¼ cup brandy (Klipdrift Brandy recommended)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• ¾ cup water

Instructions

1. Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
2. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
3. Fold in sifted flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Loosen with milk — don’t overwork it.
5. Pour into a prepared dish, top with tart apples, and bake at 180°C for 30–40 minutes, until golden.
6. Simmer your sauce of choice — cream and sugar, or brandy, butter, vanilla and water — until dissolved (or boiling, for the brandy version).
7. Saturate the warm tart generously with sauce the moment it leaves the oven. Serve immediately.

Classic Apple Dream Tart – A Winning Teatime & Dessert Recipe

Irene Muller

A classic apple tart recipe that's easy enough for weeknights, special enough for guests.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 days d 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Course Dessert, Tea Time

Cuisine South African

Servings 8

Equipment

• Oven Proof Dish

Ingredients

  

For The tart

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup self-raising flour if using plain flour, crease the baking powder to 1 teaspoon
• 2ml baking powder
• pinch of salt
• ¼ cup (60ml) milk
• 1 small tin (385g) tart apples unsweetened

For The Cream Sauce

• 1 tin cream
• 1 cup sugar

For The Brandy Sauce (optional)

• 1½ cups sugar
• ¼ cup brandy Klipdrift Brandy recommended
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp butter
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• ¾ cup water

Instructions

 

• Prepare the Batter: Preheat the oven to 180°C. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  
• Add the Dry Ingredients: Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold gently into the butter mixture. Mix slightly, then add the milk little by little — take care not to over-mix the batter.
• Bake: Pour the batter into a prepared baking dish and arrange the tart apples on top. Bake for 30–40 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.
• Make Your Sauce

  Cream Sauce: Heat the tin of cream in a saucepan with the sugar, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved. Pour over the warm apple tart.

  Brandy Sauce: Combine the sugar, brandy, butter, vanilla, and water in a saucepan. Stir continuously over heat until boiling point is reached. Pour the hot sauce slowly over the tart as soon as it comes out of the oven.

Keyword Apple, Butter, Cream, Eggs