Nina Métayer Loves This Sweet-Savory Pie for Dinner: Try Her Easy Recipe!

Nina Métayer, crowned the World’s Best Pastry Chef in 2024, has revealed her “favorite recipe for savory apple camembert tart.” “It’s a simple, delicious recipe that I often make with my daughters,” she stated on her Instagram account. Balancing roles as both a pastry chef and a mother, she prefers not to spend too much time in the kitchen in the evenings. You’ll see, this recipe, bursting with flavors from Normandy, is quick to prepare!

To start her savory tart, the pastry chef first makes an onion compote. She finely chops 3 white onions and cooks them in a buttered skillet over medium heat. “I add a bit of sugar to gently caramelize them,” she adds, incorporating 5 grams of granulated sugar. Once the onions are nicely browned, she deglazes the pan with balsamic vinegar. “Since it’s a Normandy tart, I add a little bit of Calvados,” she confides. But it can certainly be made without it. There, your onion compote is ready. Next, Nina Métayer moves on to making the shortcrust pastry. She mixes 100 grams of butter with 200 grams of type 55 flour by hand. She then adds 6 centiliters of whole milk, a pinch of salt, and forms a smooth dough ball. While the dough chills in the fridge, “for about 10 minutes,” she proceeds with the rest of the recipe.

“For the filling, you’ll need a ripe camembert and some good apples,” declares Nina Métayer, with a big smile. The chef suggests choosing “red apples, like Reinette varieties.” After slicing them, she cuts the camembert lengthwise. “I’ll also add some small walnuts for decoration,” the chef notes. With Nina Métayer, aesthetics are paramount! For assembly, she first rolls out the shortcrust pastry on a floured work surface. She then fits it into her tart dish, spreads the onion compote over the base, arranges the apples in a rosette pattern, places the camembert on top, and garnishes with a few walnut halves.

Then, bake your beautiful tart in a preheated oven at 180°C (356°F) for about 35 minutes. You can even serve it warm for an even tastier treat. Now, you know how to make Nina Métayer’s favorite savory tart. And since it seems to be a hit with her daughters, maybe it will also win over the younger members at your table?