Pear And Almond Friands Recipes

PEAR AND ALMOND FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200°C or 180°C if using a fan-forced oven and grease a 12 hole muffin pan (1/3 cup/80ml size) or friand pan.
• Whisk the egg whites in a medium bowl until frothy.
• Add the melted butter. almond meal, sifted icing sugar and flour, then the chopped pear. Stir until combined.
• Place into the 12 muffin/friand pans and sprinkle with the flaked almonds.
• Bake for about 20 minutes. Stand 5 minutes in the pan, before turning out.
• Allow to cool on a wire rack.

PEAR AND ALMOND DANISH BRAID

Steps:

• To prepare the pear filling, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt and stir to combine. Add the pears and cook, gently stirring occasionally, until they are tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer the pears to a plate and let the mixture cool completely.
• Use a coffee grinder to blend the almonds to a fine meal. Transfer the almond meal to a medium bowl. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons butter, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, the confectioners' sugar, egg yolk and almond extract. Mash the mixture into a paste with a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon.
• On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, roll the dough into an 11-by-14-inch rectangle. Arrange so a short side is facing you. With a bench scraper or the backside of a knife, very lightly mark off a 3-inch section lengthwise down the center of the dough. (Don't cut through the dough, you're just creating a guide for yourself.) Cut 1-inch strips perpendicular to the lengthwise guidelines, on either side of the 3-inch section. (These strips will be folded up to become the braided top.) Cut off the top and bottom corner strips, leaving the center flap.
• Spread the almond mixture down the 3-inch section of the pastry, leaving about an 1/8-inch border on all sides. Top evenly with the pear mixture, leaving any accumulated liquid on the plate.
• Beat the egg in a small bowl. Very lightly, brush a 1-inch border around the edges of the pastry with some of the beaten egg. (You'll be brushing the pastry that's been cut into strips, and the two end flaps.)
• Fold up the top and bottom ends of the center section to create a barrier for the filling. Starting at the top, fold each strip in at a slightly downward angle over the filling, alternating from left to right. Make sure the strips are overlapping by about 1/2 inch so they don't open up while baking. Using the parchment, move the filled pastry onto a rimmed baking sheet.
• Cover the pastry loosely with plastic wrap and let rest until slightly puffed, about 1 hour. Note the thickness of the strips when you first set it aside and use their growth as a guide. It's ready when the dough bounces back slowly when pressed lightly. (If it bounces back too fast, it hasn't risen enough; if it doesn't bounce back at all, it's gone too far.) While dough is rising, heat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Gently brush the top and sides of the pastry with some of the remaining beaten egg. Bake for 10 minutes then turn the pan and reduce the heat to 375 degrees. Bake until deep golden brown and puffed, 10 to 15 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, make the apricot glaze if desired. Heat the apricot jam in a small saucepan, stirring, until loose. Strain the jam through a mesh sieve into a small bowl; discard the solids. Brush a thin coat of apricot glaze over the warm pastry. Let cool slightly before serving.

PEAR AND ALMOND FRENCH TOAST CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Evenly distribute the butter cubes into the bottom of a 10x14-inch baking dish. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the butter. Arrange the pear slices into the bottom of the dish. Arrange the bread cubes into a single layer over the pears.
• Mix the eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract together in a bowl until fully blended; pour evenly over the bread cubes, assuring all pieces are evenly covered. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and chill overnight in refrigerator.
• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove the casserole from the refrigerator and allow to warm while the oven preheats.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the top of the bread is golden brown and the eggs have solidified, 45 to 60 minutes. Top with the sliced almonds to serve.