3 pounds Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and diced

¼ cup water

¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons (1 ounce) unsalted butter

¼ cup apricot jam (I used cinnamon crabapple jelly.)

2 tablespoons dark rum (I used white rum.)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

9-10 slices firm white bread

½-¾ cup clarified butter (I used regular butter.)

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 egg yolks

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons dark rum (I used white rum.)

Prepare the apple compote: Combine the apples and the water in a saucepan. Cover and cook over low heat for about 20 minutes. Stir the apples occasionally with a wooden spoon to keep them from sticking to the pan. Add the sugar, butter, jam, rum, and vanilla. Raise the heat to medium and continue cooking, uncovered, until all the moisture has evaporated, about 20 minutes.

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Remove the crusts from the bread and trim the bread into 4-inch squares. Brush the pieces of bread on both sides with the butter and press into a tart pan (or square tart pan). Fill the bread shells with the apple compote.

Bake the charlotte 15 minutes, then cover with parchment paper or foil to keep the exposed ends of bread from burning. Continue baking until the bread is golden, about 20 minutes longer. Serve with crème anglaise.

For the crème anglaise: Heat milk and vanilla extract in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil. Remove immediately from the heat and let steep for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the yolks and sugar until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is a pale yellow color, about 2 minutes. Continue whisking and slowly drizzle in a bit of the hot milk mixture to temper, or warm, the eggs so they won't curdle. Keep whisking and slowly pour in the remaining milk mixture.

Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the custard coats the back of a spoon. Do not boil since it will curdle if boiled. (If it does curdle, either strain or blend in a blender, adding cream if necessary. Or, start over.)

Remove the crème anglaise from the heat and strain it into a bowl. Let it cool in a bowl set of an ice water bath to stop the cooking, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. It keeps for a couple of days.

Ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bring a kettle of water to boil.

To make the caramel, combine the sugar and water in a stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil. When the mixture starts to color, swirl the pan to ensure an even color. When it is deep amber, remove it from the heat and immediately pour it into the molds and swirl to coat the bottom of each mold. Let cool.

To make the crème anglaise, heat milk and vanilla extract in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil. Remove immediately from the heat and let steep for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, yolks, and sugar until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is a pale yellow color, about 2 minutes. Continue whisking and slowly drizzle in a bit of the hot milk mixture to temper or warm, the eggs so they won't curdle. Keep whisking and slowly pour in the remaining milk mixture. Pour this mixture into the caramel-lined molds.

Set the molds in a baking dish lined with a paper towel. Fill the baking dish with boiling water so that it comes about two-thirds up the sides of the mold. Bake until the custard sets and doesn't jiggle (and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean), about 40-50 minutes. Let the custard cool in the baking dish. Remove from the pan to finish cooling. Chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours or overnight.

To unmold the custard, run a thin knife around the edge of the mold and invert it on a serving platter.