These rustic apple tarts, or Apple Snaps, as some (inexplicably) refer to them, were born on one of those beautiful fall days where the sun is shining, the weather is crisp, and the leaves seem to glow with all their colors.

Combine that with one of the most amazing apple orchards I have ever been to, and how can you not create something so simple, but so delicious?

While visiting my boyfriend in La Crosse, WI, we decided to embark on an apple picking adventure. He had never been, and I have always been fascinated by picking my own food (It’s just SO fresh!). Thus, we started our 40 minute journey to Ecker’s Apple Farm. Everyone should go to this apple orchard. I mean it, if you’re looking for a place to pick apples, this is where you should go. It’s run by the most adorable family you could ask for, they have a John Deere tractor to take you on a tour of the orchard with stops along the way where you are welcome to get off, pick an apple and eat it to make sure it’s just as tasty as it looks before you commit to picking and buying anything. Fabulous!

If the lure of a tractor train ride isn’t enough for you, they also make the best caramel I have ever tasted, which just happens to be delicious drizzled on the apple pie a la mode you can purchase by the slice, or by the entire pie, in the main barn. Trust me on this one, just go there, you cannot be disappointed!

So, as my boyfriend and I set off on our apple picking adventure, I knew I had to do something delicious with these apples.

You can’t spend all afternoon picking apples….or “apple hunting” in my boyfriend’s case….to not bake something delicious with them as soon as you get home.

So, with bag of apples and tub of caramel in hand, we set off down the road with dreams of these incredibly simple, incredibly delicious rustic apple tarts.

Ingredients:

• 4-5 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped into quarter-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup of sugar, plus a little extra for sanding
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp. butter, melted
• Two 9 inch pie crusts, store bought or your favorite recipe. (I used store bought)
• Caramel for drizzling