"Charlotte" is a favorite pie since childhood. Delicate, fluffy sponge cake, juicy apple slices and a delightful smell of vanilla. It seems that even a child can make such a simple dessert. Why does everyone's favorite cake bear this name?
It turns out that the Charlotte cake was invented in England. A dessert called "Charlotte" was first prepared in the second half of the 18th century especially for the wife of King George III, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who patronized apple producers.
Initially, this dessert did not require any culinary processing and was just a kind of ancient English bread pudding. Pieces of bread were soaked in syrup made from apples, pears or apricots, these pieces were laid in layers, and a filling of fruit was placed between them. On top, the "Charlotte" was also covered with slices of bread soaked in syrup.
Fundamental changes in the recipe took place 20 years later, when the French chef Marie Antoine Korem prepared “Charlotte”, replacing the bread with the more refined taste of “Savoyardi” (ladies' fingers) cookies.
In Russia "Charlotte" became "Charlotte". The Russian chefs decided to fill the apples with biscuit dough, and then baked everything together in the oven.
Since then, the English dessert has become like the same apple pie we are so used to!
