Spiced Cranberry Pear Tart Recipes

CRANBERRY PEAR TART

Steps:

• Press crust onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. tart pan with removable bottom; trim edges. Generously prick the bottom with a fork; set aside. , In a large skillet, cook the pears, cranberries, apple juice concentrate and apple pie spice over medium heat until pears are tender. Pour into crust. Bake at 375° until crust is golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

UPSIDE-DOWN PEAR CRANBERRY TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Toss the pears, nutmeg and half of the lemon juice together in a bowl.
• Melt the butter with the remaining lemon juice, the salt and 3 tablespoons water in a heavy ovenproof 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the sugar into the skillet and stir to combine. Cook the mixture without stirring, letting it foam and bubble; the butter will separate, which is OK. Watch the mixture carefully while it cooks because once the water evaporates and the sugar begins to change color, things happen quickly. When it becomes the color of light brown sugar, about 10 minutes, remove it from the heat. Stir in the vanilla.
• Being careful not to burn yourself, sprinkle the cranberries and ginger into the caramel. Arrange the pears in the skillet round side-down in concentric circles as nicely as you can, fitting in as many pears as possible.
• Return the skillet to the burner over medium heat and cook until the pears start to soften when you poke them with a knife, 10 to 15 minutes.
• While your pears cook, roll out your Pie Crust on a flour-dusted surface to an 11-inch circle. Cover the crust with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Lay the crust over the pears, tucking it in around the edge of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Bake until the crust is golden brown and firm to the touch, about 30 minutes.
• Allow the tart to cool until you can handle it, about 10 minutes. Put a plate on top of the tart using heatproof pads and flip it over so the pears are on top. Slice and serve warm with creme fraiche, if using.
• Combine the flour, sugar, salt and butter in a food processor and pulse until the butter is evenly distributed but still visible in chunks. While pulsing, add the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough is just wet enough to hold together when pinched between your fingers. Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, form into a disc and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.

PEAR TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°. Beat butter, sugar and cinnamon until crumbly. Beat in flour and walnuts. Press onto bottom and up sides of a 9-in. fluted tart pan with a removable bottom coated with cooking spray., For filling, beat cream cheese and 1/4 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Spread into crust. Arrange pears over top. Mix cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle over pears., Bake 10 minutes. Reduce oven setting to 350°; bake until filling is set, 15-20 minutes. Cool 1 hour on a wire rack. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

SPICED PEAR TART

Steps:

• Poach the pears: Combine 2 cups/480 milliliters water, sugar, vanilla extract and star anise pods in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Place the pears in the poaching liquid and cover with a lid. Keep just below a simmer and cook until the pears are tender, about 40 minutes depending on the ripeness of the pears. Remove the pears from the liquid to a plate and cool completely. Slice each pear half crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Set aside.
• While the pears poach and cool, make the pastry: Trim a sheet of puff pastry to one 4 1/2-by-12 inch rectangle. From the remaining puff pastry, cut two 1-by-12-inch strips. Transfer rectangle and strips to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
• Using a pastry brush, brush the beaten egg in a thin 1-inch strip along both long edges of the puff pastry, then place the strips of puff pastry on top. (You should have a rectangle of puff pastry with a puff pastry border down each of the long sides.) Use the back of a chef's knife or the tines of a fork to gently press the strips of puff pastry into the rectangle. Prick the pastry all over with a fork, then refrigerate for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 325 degrees.
• Brush the puff pastry all over with egg wash, then line the center with parchment and fill with baking weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove the parchment and baking weights. Bake until golden brown, about 3 more minutes. As soon as you pull it out of the oven, trim the edges with a knife so the layers line up, if necessary. If the center has puffed up, gently prick with a fork or toothpick to release air. Allow to cool completely.
• While the pastry bakes and cools, make the pastry cream: Combine the milk, vanilla extract, and half the sugar (using 2 tablespoons/30 grams) in a pot. Bring to a simmer over medium-low. In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons/30 grams sugar and the cornstarch, then whisk in the yolks. Whisking the eggs and cornstarch continuously, carefully add 1/4 cup of the hot milk mixture to the egg yolks, and whisk well to combine. Now, whisking the hot milk mixture in the pot continuously, add the egg yolks and cornstarch mixture to the pot. Continue whisking until it thickens. (It happens fast!) Immediately remove from the heat and whisk in the softened butter until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pastry cream. Allow to cool to room temperature.
• While pastry cream cools, make the glaze: Combine the pear purée, sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer until slightly reduced and glossy, about 3 minutes. Strain and chill.
• Transfer the puff pastry to a serving platter. Spread about 1 1/2 cups pastry cream down the center of the pastry shell. Place the sliced pear halves over the pastry cream in alternating directions. Brush each pear with a thick layer of pear glaze. Garnish any areas between the pears with toasted almonds. Dust the whole tart with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

PEAR AND CRANBERRY CROSTATA

Steps:

• For the pastry, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and toss quickly with your fingers to coat each cube of butter with the flour. Pulse 12 to 15 times, or until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the 1/4 cup ice water all at once through the feed tube. Keep hitting the pulse button to combine, but stop the machine just before the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board and form into 2 disks. Wrap the disks with plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Roll each pastry disk into an 11-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer them to 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
• For the filling, peel, core, and quarter the pears. Cut each quarter into big chunks. Toss the chunks with the orange zest. Divide the pear chunks between the pastries, covering the dough and leaving a 1 1/2-inch border. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cranberries over the top of each tart.
• Combine the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and allspice in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Pour into a bowl and rub it with your fingers until it starts holding together. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the two tarts. Gently fold the border of each tart over the pears, pleating it to make a circle.
• Bake the crostatas for 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the pears are tender. Let the tarts cool for 5 minutes, then use 2 large spatulas to transfer them to wire racks.

CRANBERRY PEAR TART WITH GINGERBREAD CRUST

Steps:

• Make the pear mixture:
• In a kettle combine the cranberry juice, the sugar, the cinnamon stick, and the lemon juice, bring the mixture to a boil, and add the pears. Heat the mixture until it just comes to a simmer and simmer the pear gently 10 to 15 minutes, or until they are just tender. Remove the kettle from the heat, stir in the cranberries, and let the mixture cool. Chill the mixture, covered, for at least 8 hours. The pear mixture may be made 3 days in advance and kept covered and chilled.
• Make the crust:
• In a food processor blend together well the flour, the brown sugar, the ginger, the cinnamon, the allspice, and the salt, add the butter, and blend the mixture until it resembles coarse meal. In a small bowl stir together the egg yolk and the molasses, add the mixture to the flour mixture, and pulse the motor, blending the mixture until it is combined well but still crumbly. Turn the mixture out into a 10-inch tart pan with a fluted removable rim and press it onto the bottom and up the side of the pan. Chill the crust for 30 minutes. Prick the crust with a fork, line it with foil, and fill the foil with the rice. Bake the crust in the lower third of a preheated 375°F. oven for 15 minutes, remove the foil and rice carefully, and bake the crust for 10 minutes more. Let the crust cool in the pan on a rack.
• Transfer the poached pears and half the cranberries with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, discard the cinnamon stick, and reserve the syrup with the remaining cranberries. In a small bowl whisk together the eggs, the sugar, the sour cream, the milk, the vanilla, the zest, and a pinch of salt, stir in the drained cranberries, and spoon half of the custard into the crust. Slice 4 of the pear halves crosswise on the diagonal, arrange them decoratively on the custard with the unsliced pear halves, and spoon the remaining custard around the pears. Bake the tart in the middle of a preheated 325°F. oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the custard is just set. Remove the rim of the pan and let the tart cool on a rack. The tart may be made up to this point 8 hours in advance, cooled completely, and chilled.
• In a saucepan boil the reserved syrup and cranberries over moderately high heat until the syrup is reduced to about 1 cup and is jellylike in consistency and transfer the cranberries with a slotted spoon to a plate to cool. Brush the pears with some of the cranberry glaze and arrange the cranberries around the edge of the tart. Serve the tart warm or chilled.

CRANBERRY PEAR TART

Steps:

• Press pastry into the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9 inch tart pan with removable bottom; trim edges. Generously prick the bottom with a fork; set aside.
• In a large skillet, cook the pears, cranberries, apple juice concentrate and apple pie spice over medium heat until pears are tender.
• Pour into crust. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cool on wire rack.

PEAR-CRANBERRY TART

Steps:

• Crust:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring butter, sugar, salt, and2 tablespoons water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium and continue boiling, stirring occasionally, until mixture has a nutty aroma and turns golden brown, 7 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla, then flour and oats, until no dry flour remains and a dough forms.
• Transfer to a fluted 9-inch tart pan. Let stand until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes, then press evenly into bottom and up sides of pan. Line with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until crust is dry on bottom and darkened slightly, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove pie weights and parchment and continue baking until golden, about 5 minutes more. Let cool completely.
• Filling:Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together eggs, 2/3 cup sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add butter and flour; whisk to combine. In another bowl, toss cranberries with remaining 3 tablespoons sugar. Scatter half of cranberries in bottom of crust. Top with pears, arranging them in a single overlapping layer. Scatter remaining cranberries over pears; transfer pan to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Slowly pour egg mixture evenly over fruits.
• Bake until pears are easily pierced with the tip of a knife and filling is puffed and set, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer tart in pan to a wire rack and let cool completely before slicing and serving.