Brown Butter Apple Tart

Directions

1. 1
   Coat tart pan with nonstick spray. Using an electric mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle, mix butter, sugar, and salt until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.
2. 2
   Whisk eggs and sugar in a medium bowl just to blend.
3. 3
   Add egg, cream, and vanilla.
4. 4
   Place butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Cook, stirring often, until butter foams, then browns (do not burn), about 5 minutes.
5. 5
   Mix until smooth.
6. 6
   Let cool for 10 minutes; remove bean. Slowly whisk brown butter into egg mixture; whisk in flour and salt.
7. 7
   Add flour all at once and beat until dough almost comes together. Turn dough out onto a work surface. Knead until dough just comes together, 4-5 times. Divide dough in half; form each half into a smooth ball. Flatten into disks and wrap each disk tightly in plastic. Chill 1 disk overnight; freeze second disk for another use.
8. 8
   Line tart shell with apples.4
9. 9
   Roll out chilled dough disk between two sheets of plastic wrap, lifting and adjusting plastic as needed, until 1/8" thick and 2" wider than tart pan.
10. 10
    Pour filling over (if using rectangular pan, you may have 1/2 cup excess filling).
11. 11
    Transfer dough in plastic wrap to a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm enough to handle, about 30 minutes.
12. 12
    Bake until apples are deep golden brown and filling is puffed, cracked, and set in center, 70-80 minutes.
13. 13
    Remove top piece of plastic from dough. Invert dough into tart pan; press onto bottom and up sides. If dough is soft, chill until firm enough for remaining sheet of plastic to be removed. Trim edges of dough (patch up any holes or tears with extra dough). Chill until firm, about 1 hour.
14. 14
    Let tart cool in pan on a wire rack, about 2 hours.
15. 15
    Preheat oven to 350F. Line dough with parchment paper or heavy-duty foil, leaving a 1"-2" overhang. Fill paper with dried beans or pie weights.
16. 16
    Remove pan sides.
17. 17
    Bake tart shell just until dough has dried and does not look wet in any spots, about 20 minutes. (If center still looks wet, bake crust without weights until dried and opaque, a few minutes longer.)
18. 18
    Serve warm or at room temperature with whipped cream.