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When it comes to baking, I firmly believe it pays to make things from scratch. But there are a few exceptions, one being puff pastry. I have seen enough baking shows where contestants lament the perils of making pastry on a warm day to know that puff pastry is hard, and the stuff from the packet does the job perfectly well. Life is too short for all that stress, right?

Well, I was wrong. Last week, I was in France, home of the perfect pastry, and on a rainy weekend I decided it was finally time to give it a go. I opted for a tarte tatin – that classic French upside-down tart of soft caramelised apples with a pastry base (but also popped out for emergency patisseries just in case of disaster).

The beauty of puff pastry is the glorious rise and air pockets that give it that light and flaky texture. The rise comes from layers of fat sandwiched between layers of dough. In the oven, the butter melts and releases moisture, which evaporates, causing air pockets in between the now buttery layers of pastry. You will know a good puff because it will have distinct layers – known as lamination.

Key to lamination is keeping the fat used to create the layers cold, to stop it combining with the rest of the pastry. Start by making your dough. Rub the room-temperature butter into your dry ingredients, then gradually add the water until the dough comes together. Knead briefly, then wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for an hour.

Place the larger, cold block of butter between two pieces of greaseproof paper and use a rolling pin to whack it into a 15-centimetre (6-inch) square. Put that in the fridge too – you want the dough and butter to be a similar firmness.

When both are cool, it is time for the folding. There are various options here, but I went for the letter fold. Roll your dough out into a rectangle about 46 by 15 cm (18×6 in) and place the butter in the middle. Fold the bottom of the pastry over it, then the top, as if folding a letter, to make three layers. Rotate by 90 degrees, roll out to the same dimensions and repeat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then repeat the rolling, folding and chilling two more times.

For the tart filling, put the butter and sugar into an oven-proof pan and let it melt over a low heat on the stove. Pack the apples tightly in the pan and leave to simmer for around 40 minutes, until the caramel is slightly golden and the liquid has evaporated. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F).

Now roll your pastry out to about 3 millimetres thick on a lightly floured surface and cut out a circle slightly bigger than your pan. Lay the pastry over the apples and tuck in the sides neatly. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the pastry is golden. Leave to cool slightly, then turn out onto a serving plate.

The difference in flavour was phenomenal compared with shop-bought pastry. And my emergency pastries remained in their box.

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