Shrunken Head Apple Tart #SundayFunday

As we are solidly into October, the Sunday Funday writers are sharing some Halloween eats and treats. Wendy is hosting this week and she wrote: "Let's start thinking about the craziest, spookiest, ookiest holiday and share some ideas. These can be an easy dinner to give the kids as they head out the door, a special surprise in their lunch box, or a fun treat to serve up at a party."

Stacy of Food Lust People Love, Sue of Palatable Pastime, Rebekah of Making Miracles, and Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm coordinate this low-stress group; we only participate when we are inspired. Wendy is hosting. Here's our Halloween line-up...

• Keto Halloween Eggy Spiders by Sneha's Recipe

• Pumpkin Deviled Eggs by A Day in the Life on the Farm

• Roasted Pumpkin Gratin by Food Lust People Love

• Shrunken Head Apple Tart by Culinary Cam (you're here)

• Spaghetti & Eyeballs by Amy's Cooking Adventures

• Witches Brew Vodka Cocktail by Our Good Life

Shrunken Heads

During the pandemic, we actually filmed and posted a video about the shrunken heads on our Culinary Cam YouTube Channel. Watch it here...

Shrunken Head Apple Tart

Ingredients

Shrunken Heads

• 4 to 6 firm medium, sized apples

• 2 cups water

• juice from 2 organic limes

• also needed: wire rack that fits over a baking sheet

Tart Crust

• 1-1/2 cup flour

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

• pinch of salt

• 3/4 cup butter

• 2 to 3 Tablespoons liquid (I used 1 Tablespoon water and 2 Tablespoons Calvados, a brandy made with apples)

• also needed: tart pan with removable base

Filling

• 1 cup sliced almonds

• 1/3 cup raisins

• 1 Tablespoon butter, softened

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• juice from 2 to 3 organic limes

• 1/4 cup maple syrup

Procedure

Shrunken Heads

Prepare a bowl with water and lime juice. Core apples and peel. Slice them in half. Carve the faces in each apple, then drop in the water bath. They don't need to be perfect. Remember you're baking them and they will shriveled. So, imperfect is perfect!

Preheat oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Pat apples dry and place them on a wire rack over a baking sheet. Bake for 2 to 3 hours - until apples are starting to shrivel. They should be shriveled yet still soft inside, yet not hard and dry.

Remove the shrunken apple heads from oven. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Tart Crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large mixing bowl, mix the flour, powdered sugar, and salt together; rub in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Alternatively stir in water and Calvados until the mixture forms a ball. Press gently into a tart pan. Prick crust with a fork to prevent bubbling. Parbake until a light golden brown, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the crust from the oven and let cool slightly.

Filling

Blend almond, raisins, butter, and cinnamon together in a mixing bowl. Spoon the mixture into the parbaked pie crust. Nestle the shrunken heads into the nut mixture.

Drizzle the entire tart with maple syrup and lime juice. Place in the oven and bake for 15 to 17 minutes.

Remove the tart from the oven and let cook until you can remove the side of the tart and place it on a serving platter.

Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Happy Halloween...or any other occasion for which you want to celebrate with shrunken heads!

I will be sharing other Halloween-inspired bites throughout the month. And the #SundayFunday group will return next week with recipes that use avocado. Stay tuned!