Charlotte is loved all over the world, but somewhere it's a pudding, somewhere it's a cold dessert, and in Russia it's a simple apple pie. In this article I will tell you about the history of the origin of this many-sided sweetness, about her travels around the world.

Charlotte is a simplified, folk, one might say affectionate derivative of "Charlotte".

There are two versions of the origin of the name:

1) Most of the legends associated with the creation of charlotte indicate that it comes from the female name "Charlotte".

2) Some culinary scientists claim (based on English recipes of the 15th century and later, which is credible) that the name of the dessert charlotte comes from the English word charlyt, which means a dish made from beaten eggs, sugar and milk. In the 15th century, in England, by the way, a meat dish with the same name was also popular.

From various sources, I have collected almost all available versions of the origin of Charlotte, some of them are quite funny:

1) Be that as it may, but all modern types of charlotte come from the English pudding. I put this most realistic, in my opinion, version at the very beginning, so as not to confuse you. It was the British who came up with this dessert, and what we have now arose relatively recently. In foggy Albion, it seems that puddings are prepared from everything in the world. The recipe for English charlotte is very simple, although there are also many options. That first and simple charlotte was a cold dessert, the so-called "raw", when moistened slices of bread were stacked in layers, interspersed with chopped fruit.

The basis of both cold / raw and baked charlotte is moistened slices of bread or biscuit, which are laid out in a small form, filling the middle with stewed fruit. The most common and favorite option is apple charlotte. But slices of bread are moistened in everything, and in dissolved butter, and in syrup from stewed fruits, and in wine, and in Russia they were very fond of moistening bread in a mixture of eggs and milk (Oh, how many centuries have passed, but we have still love to soak bread slices for toast in this egg-and-milk mixture).

2) This version is also English, but with royal participation.

In the 18th century, King George III ruled Great Britain; his wife, Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, was the patroness of apple growers. It is believed that it was she who invented the Charlotte apple dessert. Of course, I did not search much, but I did not find any confirmation of this theory. Since this pudding existed before Queen Charlotte, I think she improved the recipe, but again, there is no information about this. But this version is beautiful, I do not argue.

3) Many people know the romantic legend about the creation of charlotte by a certain chef from the UK, who was hopelessly in love with a girl named Charlotte, for whom he created a wonderful apple dessert and named it after his beloved. Name, place of residence or work, but at least the time of life is lost forever, except for a dessert with a beautiful name. A doubtful version, but lives and lives for a long time.

4) The French chef Marie Antoine Carem, who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, is often called the creator of charlotte, he was one of the founders of modern cooking, "haute cuisine", he was called "the chef of kings and the king of chefs." But he modified the charlotte, creating its new look, which is now called Charlotte Russe.

Illustration from Karem's book, he is on the right.

How it was: It is said that Antoine Karem modified charlotte in 1802, laying out the form not with bread, but with Savoyardi (“Ladyfingers”) biscuits, filling the middle with Bavarian gelatin cream. Such charlotte was a cold dessert and was called "Paris charlotte". But in 1814, Russian Tsar Alexander I entered Paris as a winner, for whom Karem prepared his dessert. Since then, this cake has been known worldwide as "Charlotte Russe".

5) I left the most beautiful and funny for you in the end.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, there were many German bakeries in Russia that prepared this dessert from leftover bread and bakery products. The Russians laughed and said that the wives of the Germans save money and even make pies from crackers, and the wives themselves, summarizing, were called Charlottes behind their backs. The name Charlotte was very popular at that time and became a household name for any German woman living in Russia.

6) In America, they believe that their national charlotte was invented by a certain chef from the city of Charlotte, which is somewhat doubtful, given the similarity with the English recipe. Most likely, charlotte was brought by immigrants. In the 19th century, a saying appeared in America that is said when speaking of a typically American phenomenon or object: "As American as apple pie" ("As American as an apple pie").

Charlotte evolution.

Despite the fact that charlotte is prepared with many fruits, the whole world fell in love with its apple version.
So, initially charlotte is a bread pudding, and its cold version, "raw". Those. slices of bread moistened with syrup from under boiled fruits were folded into the form in layers, these fruits were laid out between the bread, everything was covered with slices of bread.

Then they began to bake charlotte, the bread was already soaked in melted butter or wine, and even in a mixture of eggs and milk. But bread slices were already laid out not in layers, but along the bottom and along the walls of the form, filling the middle with stewed fruit.
Antoine Karem made charlotte an elegant and very delicate dessert, replacing bread with Savoyardi biscuits and biscuit slices, and apple filling with Bavarian cream.

In Russia, in the 18th and 19th centuries, with the flow of foreign chefs, recipes for charlotte also poured in, which adapted to our Russian realities, as a result of which charlotte from rye bread was born. But Charlotte Russe did not take root. At the beginning of the 20th century in our country, charlotte turned into a very simple biscuit pie with apples, which every housewife knows. So many generations grew up on a simple recipe for apple charlotte. And although our women are so talented that there are a lot of variations of the simplest pie at the moment, everyone still dearly loves the classic charlotte recipe, this is not even a recipe, but the proportions that everyone supplements to their liking: 1 glass of flour, 1 glass of sugar, 4 eggs, 0.5 teaspoon of soda, slaked with vinegar. Nowadays, baking soda is replaced with baking powder and vanilla sugar is added.

Despite the fact that Charlotte Russe did not take root in Russia, it is very popular in Europe and America. Speaking of America!
Charlotte came to this continent along with immigrants, but very quickly a legend was born that one American chef from a city called Charlotte came up with charlotte. To the credit of the Americans, they somewhat modified the charlotte, but for the better, giving rise to a new and wonderful pie, making it truly national and their pride.

Now in the world three main types of charlotte are firmly established, from which all cooks are already dancing.

1. English charlotte pudding, made from bread slices and apples, can be either "raw" or baked.

2. Charlotte Russe, born of the great Antoine Karem. This charlotte is prepared by laying out the form with savoiardi cookies, Bavarian cream with gelatin is poured into the form. Nowadays, Bavarian cream is mixed with various berry and fruit purees or chocolate, and jelly, most often berry, is poured on top of the cake.

3. Modern Russian charlotte with apples, which is a classic biscuit with the addition of apples to the dough.

Until the middle of the last century, there was even a special detachable form for charlotte and it was called - charlotte! But, unfortunately, I could not find any photographs or illustrations of this unique form, although some books about it say that it is small, narrow and high with a removable bottom. Now, by the way, this is not tragic, since the stores are full of detachable forms of various sizes.

Baked in dough. Classic charlotte is a German sweet dish made with white bread, custard, eggs, fruit, and liquor.

Classic recipe

The idea of ​​classic charlotte was borrowed from the English: charlotte is a type of pudding that is usually served warm. The bottom of the form is spread with bread soaked in butter or egg mixture. A layer of ready-made apples (boiled with sugar or pureed) is laid on top of the bread and covered with a layer of soaked bread. You can make multiple layers. Charlotte is then baked in the oven and served warm with ice cream, whipped cream or sweet sauces.

Charlotte in Russian

Popular in the CIS apple pie

Russian charlotte was invented in London at the beginning of the 19th century by the French chef Marie Antoine Karem, who was in the service of Alexander I. The dish was originally called Charlotte a la Parisienne(Paris charlotte), later the dessert became famous all over the world under the name charlotte russe(Russian charlotte). To make Russian charlotte, the mold is laid out with savoiardi cookies or a ready-made biscuit and filled with Bavarian cream and whipped cream. Then the dessert should be cooled until hardened.

There is a controversial assertion that during the reign of Stalin, as part of the fight against "kowtow before the West", it was renamed "apple grandmother". However, in the "Book of Tasty and Healthy Food" from 1952, this recipe is called charlotte.

Currently, in the CIS, charlotte is an easy-to-prepare pie, which is a biscuit stuffed with chopped apples.

Name etymology

There are several versions of the origin of the name of the dish. According to one of them, this recipe was suggested by Queen Charlotte, the wife of King George III of Great Britain. According to another version, the name of the dessert comes from OE. charlyt, which means a dish made from beaten eggs, sugar and milk. In the 15th century, a meat dish with the same name was also popular in England. There is a romantic story about a hopelessly in love chef who dedicated the dessert he invented to the lady of his heart, Charlotte.
According to another version, at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century in Russia there were many German bakeries in which this pie was prepared from the remnants of bread and bakery products. The Russians laughed and said that the wives of the Germans save money and even make pies from crackers, and the wives themselves, summarizing, were called Charlottes behind their backs, since it was a rather popular name that had already become a household name for any German woman living in Russia.

Apple charlotte is one of the most popular desserts in August. Summer residents, having gathered a rich harvest, bake this cake almost every day and generously treat their friends and neighbors to it. AiF.ru tried to figure out why the pie got its name.

British versions

Most likely, this pie was invented somewhere in the British Isles, where there is a special attitude towards apples. They believe that this is the fruit that everyone should eat. An English proverb says: “As long as you eat apples, you don’t need the services of a doctor” (“An apple a day keeps the doctor away”).

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Most Britons are sure that the charlotte recipe appeared at the end of the 18th century thanks to Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of the British King George III. This noble person is known for patronizing gardeners. Maybe that's why various apple dishes often appeared on her table. For tea, she asked to serve a special cake, which was prepared specifically for her taste. At court, this dessert was called charlotte - after the name of the queen, who adored this delicacy.

But there are those in the UK who believe that the recipe for this pie is much older. The name of the dessert comes from the Old English "charlyt". There is no exact equivalent of this word in Russian, it means a dish made from beaten eggs, sugar and milk. If you believe this version, then charlotte was eaten back in the 5th century.

However, the British romantics also have their own version. They say that once upon a time, a cook fell hopelessly in love with the noble beauty Charlotte. Due to poverty and low birth, he did not have the slightest chance to achieve her location. Nevertheless, the lover decided to dedicate his best culinary creation to her - an apple pie.

American version

In the United States, charlotte is considered their national dish. The Americans are sure that this pie was invented by a cook from the city of Charlotte in North Carolina. However, it is much more likely that the British brought the dessert there - the recipe is very similar to the traditional European version. But most US citizens strongly disagree with this argument. After all, they even have a saying in their homeland that they use when talking about a typically American phenomenon or object: “As American as apple pie” (“As American as apple pie”).

Charlotte Recipes

Photo: Shutterstock.com

Classic variant

The idea of ​​a classic charlotte was borrowed from the British:

1. Line the bottom of the mold with bread soaked in butter or egg mixture.

2. Put a layer of ready-made apples (boiled with sugar or mashed) on top of the bread and cover with a layer of soaked bread. You can make multiple layers.

3. Bake charlotte in the oven and serve warm with ice cream, whipped cream or sweet sauces.

Modern version

Mix 4 eggs, 1 glass of flour and 1 glass of sugar, add a teaspoon of vinegar-slaked soda and a few chopped apples, bake in the oven.

Charlotte is loved all over the world, but somewhere it's a pudding, somewhere it's a cold dessert, and in Russia it's a simple apple pie. In this article, I will tell you about the history of the origin of this many-sided sweets, about its travels around the world, modifications and show step-by-step charlotte recipes with photos.

Charlotte is a simplified, folk, one might say affectionate derivative of "Charlotte". There are two versions of the origin of the name:
1) Most of the legends associated with the creation of charlotte indicate that it comes from the female name "Charlotte".
2) Some culinary scientists claim (based on English recipes of the 15th century and later, which is credible) that the name of the dessert charlotte comes from the English word charlyt, which means a dish made from beaten eggs, sugar and milk. In the 15th century, in England, by the way, a meat dish with the same name was also popular.

From various sources, I have collected almost all available versions of the origin of Charlotte, some of them are quite funny:

1) Be that as it may, but all modern types of charlotte come from the English pudding. I put this most realistic, in my opinion, version at the very beginning, so as not to confuse you. It was the British who came up with this dessert, and what we have now arose relatively recently. In foggy Albion, it seems that puddings are prepared from everything in the world. The recipe for English charlotte is very simple, although there are also many options. That first and simple charlotte was a cold dessert, the so-called "raw", when moistened slices of bread were stacked in layers, interspersed with chopped fruit.

The basis of both cold / raw and baked charlotte is moistened slices of bread or biscuit, which are laid out in a small form, filling the middle with stewed fruit. The most common and favorite option is apple charlotte. But slices of bread are moistened in everything, and in dissolved butter, and in syrup from stewed fruits, and in wine, and in Russia they were very fond of moistening bread in a mixture of eggs and milk (Oh, how many centuries have passed, but we have still love to soak bread slices for toast in this egg-and-milk mixture).

2) This version is also English, but with royal participation.

In the 18th century, King George III ruled Great Britain; his wife, Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, was the patroness of apple growers. It is believed that it was she who invented the Charlotte apple dessert. Of course, I did not search much, but I did not find any confirmation of this theory. Since this pudding existed before Queen Charlotte, I think she improved the recipe, but again, there is no information about this. But this version is beautiful, I do not argue.

3) Many people know the romantic legend about the creation of charlotte by a certain chef from the UK, who was hopelessly in love with a girl named Charlotte, for whom he created a wonderful apple dessert and named it after his beloved. Name, place of residence or work, but at least the time of life is lost forever, except for a dessert with a beautiful name. A doubtful version, but lives and lives for a long time.

4) The French chef Marie Antoine Carem, who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, is often called the creator of charlotte, he was one of the founders of modern cooking, "haute cuisine", he was called "the chef of kings and the king of chefs." But he modified the charlotte, creating its new look, which is now called Charlotte Russe.

Illustration from Karem's book, he is on the right.

How it was: It is said that Antoine Karem modified charlotte in 1802, laying out the form not with bread, but with Savoyardi (“Ladyfingers”) biscuits, filling the middle with Bavarian gelatin cream. Such charlotte was a cold dessert and was called "Paris charlotte". But in 1814, Russian Tsar Alexander I entered Paris as a winner, for whom Karem prepared his dessert. Since then, this cake has been known worldwide as "Charlotte Russe".

5) I left the most beautiful and funny for you in the end.

At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, there were many German bakeries in Russia that prepared this dessert from the remains of bread and bakery products. The Russians laughed and said that the wives of the Germans save money and even make pies from crackers, and the wives themselves, summarizing, were called Charlottes behind their backs. The name Charlotte was very popular at the time and became a household name for any German woman living in Russia (Wikipedia).

6) In America, they believe that their national charlotte was invented by a certain chef from the city of Charlotte, which is somewhat doubtful, given the similarity with the English recipe. Most likely, charlotte was brought by immigrants. In the 19th century, a saying appeared in America that is said when speaking of a typically American phenomenon or object: "As American as apple pie" ("As American as an apple pie").

Charlotte evolution.
Despite the fact that charlotte is prepared with many fruits, the whole world fell in love with its apple version.
So, initially charlotte is a bread pudding, and its cold version, "raw". Those. slices of bread moistened with syrup from under boiled fruits were folded into the form in layers, these fruits were laid out between the bread, everything was covered with slices of bread.

Then they began to bake charlotte, the bread was already soaked in melted butter or wine, and even in a mixture of eggs and milk. But bread slices were already laid out not in layers, but along the bottom and along the walls of the form, filling the middle with stewed fruit.
Antoine Karem made charlotte an elegant and very delicate dessert, replacing bread with Savoyardi biscuits and biscuit slices, and apple filling with Bavarian cream.

In Russia, in the 18th and 19th centuries, with the flow of foreign chefs, recipes for charlotte also poured in, which adapted to our Russian realities, as a result of which charlotte from rye bread was born. But Charlotte Russe did not take root. At the beginning of the 20th century in our country, charlotte turned into a very simple biscuit pie with apples, which every housewife knows. So many generations grew up on a simple recipe for apple charlotte. And although our women are so talented that there are a lot of variations of the simplest pie at the moment, everyone still dearly loves the classic charlotte recipe, this is not even a recipe, but the proportions that everyone supplements to their liking: 1 glass of flour, 1 glass of sugar, 4 eggs, 0.5 teaspoon of soda, slaked with vinegar. Nowadays, baking soda is replaced with baking powder and vanilla sugar is added.

Despite the fact that Charlotte Russe did not take root in Russia, it is very popular in Europe and America. Speaking of America!
Charlotte came to this continent along with immigrants, but very quickly a legend was born that one American chef from a city called Charlotte came up with charlotte. To the credit of the Americans, they somewhat modified the charlotte, but for the better, giving rise to a new and wonderful pie, making it truly national and their pride.

Now in the world three main types of charlotte are firmly established, from which all cooks are already dancing.
1. English charlotte pudding, made from bread slices and apples, can be either "raw" or baked.
Of course, a great many recipes have accumulated over so many centuries, but for myself and for you, and for the sake of curiosity, I took a hundred-year-old recipe from the book "Practical Fundamentals of Culinary Art" by Pelageya Alexandrova-Ignatieva.

2. Charlotte Russe, born of the great Antoine Careme. This charlotte is prepared by laying out the form with savoiardi cookies, Bavarian cream with gelatin is poured into the form. Nowadays, Bavarian cream is mixed with various berry and fruit purees or chocolate, and jelly, most often berry, is poured on top of the cake.
I prepared Karem charlotte according to a combined recipe with a Russian bias: I laid out the form with Savoyardi cookies dipped in a mixture of sugar syrup and rum (most often Grand Marnier liquor is used as alcohol), poured Bavarian cream with vanilla, and then added a layer of cranberry jelly on top.

3. A modern Russian charlotte with apples, which is a classic biscuit with apples added to the dough.

Until the middle of the last century, there was even a special detachable form for charlotte and it was called - charlotte! But, unfortunately, I could not find any photographs or illustrations of this unique form, although some books about it say that it is small, narrow and high with a removable bottom. Now, by the way, this is not tragic, since the stores are full of detachable forms of various sizes. But if you have a photo or illustration of a charlotte and you can send it, I will be extremely grateful to you.

In our regular column "History of the dish" we have already told what products the first Caesar salad was made from, why the bird's milk cake has such an unusual name, how Sophia Loren influenced the popularization of Carbonara pasta and much more. Today HELLO.RU decided to introduce you to the history of Russians' favorite pie - charlotte.

Charlotte has won such a high popularity among the housewives of our country for two reasons: firstly, it is quick and easy to cook, and secondly, all the necessary products are affordable and inexpensive. It is believed that charlotte is a summer-autumn dessert, since it is during these seasons that a real apple “blockage” happens in the gardens of many Russians.

Meanwhile, the first charlotte was cooked on the territory of a completely different country - England, and the genius who came up with this simple culinary formula was the French chef Marie Antoine Karem. Karem was the favorite cook of many kings and emperors in the 19th century. Alexander I was also one of Marie Antoine's gourmet dishes - Karem worked in his St. Petersburg palace for several years, passing to the emperor's disposal directly from the hands of the English king George IV. By the way, the name of the pie, according to one version, was given in honor of the British royal person - George's mother, Queen Charlotte.

The first "Russian charlotte" (that's what it was called in the world) was prepared as follows: a layer of savoiardi biscuit cookies was laid out on the bottom of a baking dish and covered with whipped cream. Apples appeared in this pie a little later, by the way, even then, along with crispy fruits, it was customary to add nuts, cocoa powder and even raisins to the dessert. Then, during the time of I.V. Stalin, the dish was renamed "Russian grandmother" - there should not have been any hint of European roots in the Soviet man's favorite delicacy.

Now in the CIS, almost any pie with apples is called charlotte. The dough for classic charlotte is kneaded from flour, eggs and sugar, and crushed apples are added to it before baking.

In the middle of the last century, an unusual variety (although, in our opinion, this is a completely different dish) of "Russian charlotte" was popular in New York: biscuit dough stuffed with whipped cream and cocktail cherries was served in paper cups.

Today HELLO.RU will tell you how to cook charlotte according to the recipe of the chef of the Searchlight restobar.

Ingredients:

Green apples - 700 g

Eggs - 5 pcs.

Vanillin - 3 g

Flour - 160 g

Sugar - 170 g

Milk - 25 g

Baking powder - 10 g

Orange - 1 pc.

Lemon - 1 pc.

Cinnamon - 2 g

Cooking method:

1. Peel the apples from the peel and seeds, remove the core. Cut into circles and pour squeezed juice of orange and lemon, add cinnamon, mix.

2. Grate the zest on a fine grater. Beat the egg with sugar in a dense foam, add salt and zest. Add flour mixed with baking powder. Knead the dough, add milk at the end.

3. Put the dough and apples in layers in a greased form. Sprinkle with sugar.

4. Bake for 30 minutes at 170 degrees, then 20 minutes at 160 and 140 degrees.

Bon appetit!