Pear Tart
Welcome!
I am so excited that you are here reading my first blog post. I have been wanting for so long to share my experiences and thoughts about food, cooking and the culture around it with an audience. I hope to inspire you with these recipes and also share information so that even the more challenging recipes seem easy to tackle. Please feel free to share this site with other food lovers and cooking enthusiasts. Let’s prepare ourselves for an adventure through cuisine, it’s culture and learning. Bon appetit!
Pear Tart
Who else out there loves fall? Like so many others, I enjoy when the winds change, the foliage turns, and even sometimes the way the light in the sky changes. I sometimes think that I love fall the most because it brings back memories of my grandmothers and mothers cooking. My grandmother would always have pecan shortbread hanging out on the kitchen counter waiting for us to graze on, and my mother has a knack for including seasonal vegetables into our dinner.
Today, I would like you to try your hand at a pear tart. An impressive dessert to serve after a Sunday dinner or for a rendez-vous with your friends, these little tarts are sure to put an exclamation point on any meal. Not too sweet, and with an abundance of flavor, these tarts do take a bit of time but are not difficult to make.
I have adapted this recipe from the book The Art and Soul of Baking by Cindy Mushet. I will reference this book in my blog many times. You should buy this book. It has so many wonderful recipes, the instructions are crystal clear and it is so reliable.
Vanilla Shortcrust - half recipe - The Art and Soul of Baking, makes 4 tarts
You will need 4 small tart rings, here is the link to ones on Amazon
3.12 ounces (1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons of sugar
pinch of salt (1/8th tsp to be exact)
2 ounces (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter (I like to freeze for 15 minutes after cutting - but do this only if you have the time), cut into small pieces
1 egg yolk
.5 to 1.5 teaspoons of water
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
Put the sugar, flour and salt in the food processor with the blade attachment, pulse a couple of times to incorporate ingredients. Add the butter into the processor and pulse until the size of small pebbles. In another bowl mix the wet ingredients (vanilla, egg yolk, and 1/2 tsp of flour), pour into food processor, blend until mixture is clumpy. Yes, I said clumpy. If the dough becomes cohesive when you squeeze it then its done. If not, add a LITTLE bit more water - people we are talking about 1/2 teaspoon additions at a time. Test dough after every water addition to see if it is finished.
Take dough out of the food processor and knead with your hands 2-4 times to incorporate and form a single mass. Press out into a small round disc, wrap snugly with plastic wrap or your favorite environmentally safe material and place into fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Shaping dough into tart mold
After the dough has chilled in the fridge (if it is too warm it will not keep its shape when placing into tart molds), place it onto a surface - well floured - that you use for rolling out dough. If you are a novice with forming tart and pie doughs, I highly suggest that you just use the press in technique. Its easy, swear. Take your rolling pin that has been floured and roll out the dough enough so that all four tarts will have enough pastry. Cut out four large circles (enough to fill up most of the tart mold), and remember - they don’t have to be perfect. Then press each circle into the molds. The only thing that you need to make sure of is that there is no holes and that the shapes are pressed down into the bottom and sides. Use extra dough for any holes. Trim edges so that pastry is flush to the top of each mold. I like to freeze my tart shells for 20 minutes before baking. Set the oven to 375F. Cut out four circles larger than the tart molds from parchment paper. After you take the tarts out of the freezer, then put the parchment circles into the cold tart shells, fill with pie weights or dry beans. Bake tarts 15-18 minutes. Tip: I always check any baked item 3-4 minutes before finished time. All ovens vary slightly in temperature. You are looking for a crust that is cooked, has a little bit of color and slightly shiny from the butter. However, you will not have deep browning because the shell is covered with parchment. Do not take the tart shells out of their molds, set aside and let cool on the baking sheet.
Almond Filling - half recipe - The Art and Soul of Baking
While the tarts cool, you can make your filling. It is really easy, just use the same food processor (you really don’t have to clean in-between) and the ingredients below:
2 ounces of almond paste
1 tablespoon of sugar
2 ounces (1/2 stick, or 4 tablespoons) of european butter - preferably unsalted and room temperature
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 tablespoons of flour
Place all of the ingredients together in your food processor and blend until well incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the bowl a couple of times, make sure everything is blended well and smooth.
Braised Pears
2 pears, not too ripe - peeled, cut in half and bottoms carved out where the seeds are (I used a teaspoon, it was really easy)
1 cup of water
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 vanilla bean
Use a sauce pan and put the water and 1/2 cup of sugar inside. Heat on stove top on medium heat. Meanwhile, slice the vanilla bean in half and scrape out seeds. Place seeds and remaining vanilla bean in the sugar mixture when it starts to bubble. Once sugar has dissolved, add pears - cut side down - into the liquid. Feel free to spoon braising liquid over the pears every once in awhile. Once the pears have softened (a paring knife should easily poke into one), then take off heat and let sit in liquid for another 5-10 minutes. Once pears are done, place on cutting board and cut into diagonal pieces, keeping the shape of the pears intact. Set aside for assembly.
Finishing the Pear Tarts
The oven temperature should still be at 375F. Take the tart shells - still in their molds and evenly scoop the almond filling into each of them. There is just enough filling for each of the four tarts. Place the pears in a nice fan shape into the filling, press in slightly. Bake tarts for about 21 minutes. Look for a golden color on the filling, the pears will not darken much. Let the tarts sit for 5 minutes before taking out of their molds. Be careful, the tarts are still very hot. The tarts should slip out easily from their molds because the amount of butter in the recipe. Serve warm with ice cream or any other accompaniment you desire. Keep in the fridge and reheat for a couple of minutes IF you have any left over!
Mini Pear Tart with Vanilla Ice Cream
