APPLE AND POMEGRANATE TART TARTIN

Steps:

• Crust:.
• Blend first 3 ingredients in processor 5 seconds.
• Add chilled butter and blend until coarse meal forms; add creme fraiche.
• Blend, using on/off turns, until moist clumps form.
• Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk.
• Wrap; chill 1 hour.
• Roll dough out on lightly floured surface to 11-inch-diameter round.
• Slide onto rimless baking sheet, cover, and chill until ready to use, up to 1 day.
• Filling:
• Boil pomegranate juice in heavy large saucepan until reduced to scant 1 cup syrup, about 15 minutes.
• DO AHEAD: Pomegranate syrup can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.
• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400°F
• Spread room-temperature butter evenly over bottom and up sides of heavy medium oven-proof skillet (10 inches across top; 8 inches across bottom; 21/4 inches deep).
• Sprinkle sugar evenly over butter.
• Cook over medium heat without stirring until mixture bubbles all over, about 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat.
• Stand apple quarters on 1 end around edge of skillet, leaning 1 cut edge against pan side and fitting snugly.
• Stand as many apples in center as will fit.
• Sprinkle apples with allspice and salt.
• Cook apples over medium-high heat without stirring until thick, deep-amber syrup bubbles up, adding any remaining apples as space permits (apples will shrink as they cook), about 20 minutes.
• Pour 1/4 cup pomegranate syrup over (mixture will bubble).
• Cook until juices thicken again, 4 to 5 minutes (syrup will be deep amber).
• Remove from heat.
• Using spatula, press apples gently toward center, then down to compact.
• Slide crust over apples.
• Press crust down around apples at edge of skillet.
• Cut 4 slits in top for steam to escape.
• Bake tart until crust is brown and juices at edge are thick and dark scarlet in color, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Remove skillet from oven; let stand 1 minute.
• Place large plate over skillet.
• Using oven mitts and holding plate and skillet firmly together, invert tart onto plate.
• Carefully lift off skillet.
• Return any apples to tart that may be stuck in skillet.
• Let cool at least 15 minutes.
• Serve tarte Tatin warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream and drizzle of remaining pomegranate syrup.