Elise,

I made the apple torte for my family tonight, and it was a hit! The directions were perfect. That little bit of lemon zest adds just the right touch.

Thank you for from all of us...this is a keeper!
Sridhar

Hi Sridhar,
I'm so glad you guys liked it! It's pretty easy, isn't it. And that bit of lemon zest does make all the difference.

Hi there,
we love this recipe - it is such an elegant dessert. One question though, mine seems to bake and brown very quickly, pretty much in 20 minutes. I have it on 375, and my oven thermometer says it is correct. I live in LA, so no altitude issues. Do you use a gas/electric oven, what rack do you put it on? Also, do you add sugar in any special order other than what is listed in the recipe? A bit stumped, but thanks for an awesome recipe.

Note from Elise: Every oven bakes a little differently, many things could be contributing to having a shorter cooking time than what we listed here. Use the middle rack. No other sugar directions than what we have listed here.

The recipe was FABULOUS!! This is the first time I've ever made anything from scratch, on my own, and I'm really surprised! It's fantastic! My mom was shocked that it was edible AND delicious... :) I've had torte before, but didn't know it was called torte, because the torte was a Vietnamese banana/coconut torte - it's still good, but this apple torte is so much better! I can't wait for another opportunity to make it again!

Hi,

I was wondering if this could be made with pears - seems like a good batter for almost any hard fruit. However I know lemons are great with apples, but would they be as good with pears? Should nutmeg be used instead? Just wondering what you would advise. Thanks!

I just took my torte out of the oven, and it looks like it turned out really well. Do you think this recipe would work just as well with brown sugar and whole wheat pastry flour? Thank you.

Don't know, if you try it let us know how it turns out for you. ~Elise

Fabulous recipe! And so easy. I only used 3/4 c. sugar and it was wonderful. The lemon zest is definitely key. YUM!

I made this twice in the past week, once for work and once for a family BBQ. The first time I added in the lemon zest as recommended but it was a little too lemony for my taste, so the second time I cooked the lemon zest with the apples; I added it a little bit before the apples went soft and it added the zip of the lemon without it overpowering the apples. Just an idea for anyone who isn't a huge fan of lemon.

I made this cake on the weekend, it was so easy to make and taste really good! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe

Great recipe! I just finished making this recipe for the second time this week. I hate to change a recipe the first time I make it but I needed it to be gluten-free for a neighbor. Gluten-free all purpose flour mix worked fine in case someone is wondering.

The torte is fabulous! My only concern is that it didn't release well from the pan. I generously buttered my pan and followed the cooling directions exactly. I think I will also use parchment paper next time. Love the buttery taste.

I made the apple tart today and it was a hit! Thank you very much.

This torte was really tasty even though I made a few modifications. I don't know how it would have tasted if I had followed the recipe exactly, but my husband loved it and he is extremely fussy about his baked goods. I used whole wheat flour and 1/2 the amount of sugar (used a mixture of brown sugar and raw cane sugar because I ran out of brown sugar), 2 whole eggs because that's all I had. I grounded ~ inch of vanilla bean with a few cinnamon flakes instead of using vanilla extract. I added the lemon zest to the apples just before they were done softening in the pan. The batter cooked fine in ~30 min and didn't burn using the middle shelf in oven at 375oC. Next time, i'll decrease even more on the sugar and instead use that amount to sprinkle on top after baking!