Step by step

When cooked, leave the mould to cool then turn out the charlotte onto a serving dish

Tips
You can make a charlotte with many different types of fruit - for example, apples, strawberries and pears - but also with jam or creamed chocolate, depending on your taste. The dessert will keep, under a glass bell or in cake tin, for a couple of days at most.
Trivia
This dessert dates back to the 1700s, and derives its name from Queen Charlotte, wife of George III: it seems likely that apple charlotte was prepared for the first time in honour of the sovereign. The shape of the charlotte also recalls the name given to the rippled head-dresses used by French nobles.