Apple Ginger Pomegranate Tart with 5003 Falernum

The art of the tart is our family Thanksgiving tradition. I always make either a pie or a tart, or two, for the holiday. Apple seems to be the favorite, but I try different things every so often. Those who know me well, know my personal aversion to cinnamon, a topic on which I've ranted many times. I am of the belief that the food product should taste like the main ingredient, not like every other baked good under the sun.

This year, I decided to add some of my personal favorite flavors to the mix, which are ginger and pomegranate. This time of year is pomegranate season, they start to get ripe in the Arizona winter. Since I'm nowhere near that climate, it's something I miss. I also decided to try something new. Over the past year I've become attached to our neighborhood distillery, Elevation 5003, in a little shopping center that is walking distance from home.
I've gotten to know the owner, Loren, and she's a big supporter of the running community here, among other things, and a dog lover, and she appreciates good food and drink. She's also been a supporter of my artwork, and I currently have some of my pastels on display there. Our puppies have grown up visiting the distillery often, and Loren has patient with the process of raising them, so they don't bark or jump on things, or steal people's drinks.
One of the types of liquor they produce is Falernum, which is a Caribbean-style liqueur, flavored with almond, ginger, allspice, clove, anise, and lime. I've never been a fan of those baking-type spices, but last Christmas I tried the Falernum, which Loren described as "Christmas in a glass", and I was instantly hooked.
Last year I created a Falernum punch-type cocktail with equal parts vodka (The 5003 brand is called Narrow Road) and Falernum, with squeezes of fresh lemon, lime, and orange juices, a maraschino cherry, all over ice, with a slice of jalapeno in it.
This year I decided to try soaking the apples in the Falernum to give them a different flavor. I sliced the apples, leaving the skin on, and soaked them for 2 hours in a shallow bowl with about 1/2 cup of Falernum, stirring and turning them to make sure they all got coated with it. This year I used Braeburn and Jazz apples, just because that's what they had at Sprouts and they both have good flavor and are tart enough for a tart.

I peeled a small knob of fresh ginger and chopped it finely, throwing half of it in with the apples and Falernum, and saving the other half for the tart dough.

While they were soaking, I made the tart dough. Starting with a softened stick of butter, cut up into thin slices, I added the flour, mixed it with a fork until the crumbs were evenly mixed and about the size of peas. Then I added the sugar, mixing again. After that, I added the ginger, a third of a cup of Falernum, two large egg yolks, and the zest of one big lemon.

I mixed it all up together, and it was crumbly, needing more liquid, so I added a couple of tablespoons of water at a time until it all stuck together and I was able to knead it into a slightly sticky dough. Then I wrapped it in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge while I prepared the pomegranate.

The idea with the pomegranate for the tart is to just get the juice, without the seeds or the bitter-tasting white junk that holds the seeds in place. I roll the whole pomegranate under the pressure of my hand for a few seconds before I cut into it. Then I remove the pomegranate seeds from the white film and place them in a bowl, and remove whatever white junk is left, so all you've got are the dark red fruit around the individual seeds.

Take the seeds and place them in a plastic bag with a zipper-type closure. Get all the air out of the bag before you seal it. Use the pressure of your hands to squeeze the juice out of the pulp on the seeds. Be careful not to tear the bag or it will look more like Halloween in your kitchen than Thanksgiving!

Once all the seeds are juiced (no more popping of the seeds) then carefully pour the juice out, using a cheesecloth or filter if you have one, so all you get is the pomegranate juice. Watch out for the kitchen supervisors trying to micromanage you.

I poured about a third of a cup of the juice over the soaking apples and mixed it in, and saved the rest for drinks later!

Then I went back to the dough. Using two large pieces of wax paper, I floured the bottom piece and placed the dough ball on it, flattening it under my palm. Then I sprinkled a little flour on top of the dough, and placed the other piece of wax paper over the top. Using the rolling pin, I rolled it out until it looked as big as the tart pan bottom. Then I rolled it out even further to allow for the sides of the tart pan to be covered with dough.

Carefully remove the wax paper and place the dough, centered, in the tart pan, pressing down gently to cover the entire pan evenly and up the sides. Any dough that hangs over can be rolled back up and mashed with a fork or decorated if you are into that sort of thing. I like my tart to look sort of rustic, so I pinch it with my fingers and that's enough. Prick the bottom of the dough evenly with a fork, but don't gouge big holes in it.Then it's time to arrange the soaked apple slices, trying not to eat too many of them before they make it into the tart pan. Again, I don't worry too much about appearances, I arrange them sort of neatly, but you can be as obsessive as you want to be. There might be a little juice from the soaking liquid that pools in the bottom of the tart, don't worry about it. You don't want it to be too wet, though.

Leave the remaining Falernum-pomegranate-ginger mixture for drinks later- or, drink it now, after filtering it.

I covered the tart in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to bake the next morning, but you can bake it right away.

To bake, set the oven at 375, placing the tart pan on a cookie sheet, so you don't damage it by pushing the bottom up. Bake for 40-50 minutes until the apples and dough start to brown.

Cool and serve, with ice cream, whipped cream, coffee, more Falernum, or just plain.

Ask the kitchen supervisors to write you a review...

Ingredients
Filling
4 large apples (I used 2 Braeburn and 2 Jazz), scrubbed, cored and sliced thin
1/2 cup Elevation 5003 Falernum
1/2 T. chopped peeled fresh ginger
1/3 cup fresh pomegranate juice
Soak apple slices in other ingredients for about 2 hours in a shallow bowl, mixing every 30 minutes to evenly coat the apples.

Dough
2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 stick (4 oz) butter
1/2 T. fresh chopped peeled ginger
zest of 1 large lemon
2 large egg yolks
1/3 cup of Falernum
water as needed
Mix flour, sugar and butter until even and crumbly, then add remaining ingredients, onyl adding water until dough sticks together, slightly sticky and kneadable.

Follow instructions as above, bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes.