Rustic Apple Tart with Fennel and Spices

The dough: Pour the flour, sugar, salt, egg yolk, and butter cut into pieces into the bowl of your mixer. Equip it with the paddle attachment. Turn your mixer on to speed 2. Add the water in three or four additions, waiting a few seconds between each addition.

A ball of dough will form. When it's ready, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least half an hour.

The filling: Clean the fennel bulbs by removing the outer layer of each bulb. Rinse them and cut them into quarters. Remove the core and the green tops. Slice them using a mandoline (be careful with your fingers) or a knife.

In a saucepan, place the sliced fennel, the star anise, the cardamom seeds, the clove, the ginger powder, and 100 grams of sugar. Add the apple juice. Then bring to a boil, mix, and reduce the heat.

Let it cook for about thirty minutes over medium heat or under a diffuser. The fennel should be almost candied. Remove all the aromatics.

Peel the two apples and slice them. In a saucepan, prepare a syrup with sugar and water. Add vanilla and star anise. Once the syrup is hot, add the sliced apples. Poach the apple slices in the syrup for 10 minutes. Cut the other apples into thin slices (I didn't peel them as they are organic).

Cooking: Preheat your oven to 200°C. Take the dough out of the refrigerator. Roll out your dough directly on parchment paper to a thickness of about 3-4 mm, shaping it into an oval or round. Transfer directly to a baking sheet. Prick the dough with a fork.

First, fill with poached apples, cover with fennel, then arrange the apple slices harmoniously until 2 inches from the edges. Fold the edges over, pressing down on the fruit.

Brush the edges with egg white. Sprinkle with brown sugar.