French Pear Tart Part 1 Recipes

FRENCH PEAR TART

Steps:

• Position one oven rack to middle, and move the second rack to the top slot.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a bowl, mix together flour, sugar and salt. Add melted butter and combine to form dough.
• Transfer dough to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. With your hands press dough down to spread on bottom and onto the rims of the pan.
• Place in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 30 minutes, or until crust turns golden brown. When ready remove crust from oven and let sit to cool. Leave oven on.
• Meanwhile, heat the fig preserves in microwave for about 40 seconds. Pour heated fig preserves through a mesh strainer to separate chunks from liquid.
• Now, slice five pears into 1/2-inch slices, discarding core.
• Heat 1 tbsp of butter in a large cast iron skillet. Add pear slices and 1 tbsp water. Cover and cook on medium heat until pears are slightly tender; about 3 minutes.
• Remove pears onto a large platter and let sit to cool.
• Take the remaining three pears and cut them in the same manner.
• Now melt 2 tbsp of butter in previously used cast iron skillet. Add newly-sliced pears, chunks of fig reserves, and salt. Cook on medium heat, covered, for ten minutes; stir occasionally until pears are very tender.
• Take a potato masher and mash the pears and fig reserves into a puree. Let cook for another 5-7 minutes or until pureed mixture reduces and thickens.
• Transfer pear-fig puree onto the now cooled crust; spread evenly.
• Now, take the cooled pear slices and begin to assemble them in layered circles, starting at the outer edges (see photo).
• Place tart on the middle rack of the oven. Bake in 350 degree F-heated oven for 30 minutes.
• Warm up the strained liquid fig preserves for 20 seconds in the microwave.
• When tart is ready, remove from oven and brush surface of the pears evenly with the warmed fig liquid.
• Return to oven and place on the top rack. Broil very briefly; watching carefully until pears gain a nice caramelized look.
• Remove from oven and let cool for at least 1 1/2 hours before serving.
• When ready, place the bottom of the tart pan on a wide can of food. Hold the ring part of the pan and carefully slide it downwards (see photo).
• Cut pear fig tart into eight slices and serve. Enjoy!

FRENCH PEAR TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• FOR TART DOUGH:
• Combine butter + 1/4 cup sugar in med bowl, mix till well-blended & then mix in the flour.
• Beat together vanilla + 2 eggs, add to flour mixture, mix till dough forms & chill for 10 minutes.
• Grease & flour bottom of 9-in tart pan w/removable bottom. Roll chilled dough 1-in larger than pan.
• Place dough in pan & press dough to sides of tart pan (It needs to come to the rim of the pan). Bake for 10 minutes.
• FOR CUSTARD:.
• Combine yolks + 2 eggs, beat well & set aside.
• Combine milk, cream + sugar & place in top of dbl-boiler. Cook over simmering water till temp reaches 140°F.
• Remove from heat, add egg mixture (whisking constantly) & strain.
• FOR TART ASSEMBLY: Arrange pear slices in tart shell. Pour custard mixture over pears till shell is almost full. Bake 25 min or till custard is set. Remove from heat & allow to stand for 30 minutes.
• TO SERVE: Cook jam & wine in a sml saucepan to form glaze. Brush glaze over tart, cool completely & refrigerate till ready to serve.

FRENCH PEAR TART WITH NUTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Unroll the puff pastry sheet and line a tart pan with it. Cut off any overhanging pastry. Prick pastry several times with a fork.
• Stir together creme fraiche, egg, and sugar in a bowl until smooth. Fold in nut mix.
• Arrange pear slices on puff pastry and cover with creme fraiche mixture.
• Bake tart in the preheated oven until the filling is lightly colored and pastry has puffed up and browned, about 25 minutes.

FRENCH PEAR TART - PART 1

Steps:

• Getting ready: If you are using canned pears, you have nothing to do now. If you are using fresh pears but do not wish to poach them, you have nothing to do now. If you are using fresh pears and want to poach them, peel them and leave them whole. Bring the 4 cups water, the 1 1/4 cups sugar and the juice of the lemon to a boil in a saucepan just large enough to hold the pears. Add the pears to the boiling syrup, lower the heat so the syrup simmers and gently poach the pears until they are tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Cool the pears to room temperature in the syrup. To make the almond cream: Put the butter and sugar in the workbowl of a food processor and process until the mixture is smooth and satiny. Add the ground almonds and continue to process until well blended. Add the flour and cornstarch, process, and then add the egg. Process for about 15 seconds more, or until the almond cream is homogeneous. Add the rum or vanilla and process just to blend. If you prefer, you can make the cream in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a bowl with a rubber spatula. In either case, the ingredients are added in the same order. Scrape the almond cream into a container and either use it immediately or refrigerate it until firm, about 2 hours. Getting ready to bake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Have a lined baking sheet at the ready. If you are using fresh (unpoached) pears, peel them now. If you are using poached or unpoached pears, cut them in half from blossom to stem and core them; rub the unpoached pears with lemon juice. Whatever pears you have, make sure to pat them dry - really dry - so that their liquid won't keep the almond cream from baking.

FRANGIPANE PEAR TART

Steps:

• Combine water, 1 cup white sugar, honey, vanilla bean, cinnamon stick, and cardamom in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add pears; reduce heat and simmer until pears are translucent or easily pierced with a knife, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
• Combine 1 1/2 cup flour, confectioners' sugar, and salt in a bowl. Cut in 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon butter until mixture is crumbly. Mix in egg yolk until dough sticks together in large clumps.
• Grease a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press dough evenly into the pan. Freeze for 30 minutes. Reserve leftover dough for patching cracks.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Grease the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil with butter; place butter-side down over the pastry. Transfer tart pan to a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven, using leftover dough to patch any cracks, until dough looks dry and light brown, about 20 minutes. Peel off aluminum foil; let pastry cool.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine 2/3 cup white sugar and 1/3 cup butter in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Mix in ground almonds. Add egg, egg yolk, 2 teaspoons flour, and cornstarch; beat until frangipane is smooth. Beat in almond extract and vanilla extract.
• Spread frangipane evenly over the pastry. Drain pear halves and dry with paper towels. Cut lengthwise into even slices. Place 1 pear half on a spatula and gently fan out slices. Place on frangipane. Repeat with remaining pear halves.
• Bake in the preheated oven until frangipane is firm to the touch, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.