French Pear Flan Food

PEAR CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease an 8 inch, cast iron skillet or similar sized baking dish with some butter.
• Put the eggs and sugar in a bowl or mixer and whisk well until well broken up and combined. Add the milk, flour, vanilla, lemon zest and salt and mix/whisk until smooth.
• Peel the pears, cut in half and remove the core. Cut into slices and arrange in the bottom of the skillet/baking dish - you can fan them out slightly as I did or arrange any other way you choose.
• Carefully pour the batter into the skillet/baking dish over the pears.
• Bake in the oven for roughly 35 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges and set.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a couple of minutes before serving. It will probably be puffed up when you take it out the oven and collapse slightly after a minute.
• Sprinkle with a little confectioner's sugar to serve, if desired.

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!

PEAR TARTE TATIN

Steps:

• Remove refrigerated pie crust from package, and follow manufacturer's suggestions for unrolling crust. Set aside.
• Combine nutmeg, ginger, and 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl.
• Peel, quarter, and core 4 pears. Slice each quarter into 3 slices, from core end to bottom, and place in a large bowl. Cut remaining pear in half; peel, and core one half and add to the bowl. Peel, core, and slice the other half as directed above and add to the bowl. Drizzle pears with bourbon and sprinkle with spice-sugar mix, tossing to evenly coat.
• Melt butter in a 9-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add 2/3 cup white sugar and salt to the melted butter, stirring to combine until mixture bubbles, 2 to 3 minutes. Place the single pear half in the center of the skillet. Fan remaining pear slices around the center, core end to the outside of the skillet and stem end toward the center. If possible, turn the pieces in the same direction. Keep adding pear slices, filling in any gaps, until they are all in the skillet.
• Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, undisturbed, until pears are fork-tender and color develops to the liquid, about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place a baking sheet on a rack in the lower third of the oven.
• Remove skillet from heat and place unbaked pie shell on top of the fruit, using a fork to tuck the edges of the pie shell toward the bottom of the skillet. Place skillet on the prepared baking sheet in the preheated oven. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake until crust is brown, 28 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven. Place a heat-safe plate, larger than the skillet, upside down over the crust.
• Use oven mitts to grab the plate and skillet together and quickly flip the skillet contents onto the plate; this move is tricky and requires some forearm strength and dexterity. After the flip, if the contents are not centered on the plate, use a spatula to gently move to the center. Add any fruit that remained in the skillet, and drizzle any remaining liquid over the top of the tarte tatin.
• Allow to sit 15-20 minutes, then serve warm.

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.

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.

PEAR TARTE TATIN

Steps:

• Core the pears, then peel as neatly as possible and halve. If you like, they can be prepared up to a day ahead and kept in the fridge, uncovered, so that they dry out.
• Tip the sugar, butter, star anise, cardamom and cinnamon into an ovenproof frying pan, about 20cm wide, and place over a high heat until bubbling. Shake the pan and stir the buttery sauce until it separates and the sugar caramelises to a toffee colour.
• Lay the pears in the pan, then cook in the sauce for 10-12 mins, tossing occasionally, until completely caramelised. Don't worry about them burning - they won't - but you want to caramelise them as much as possible. Splash in the brandy and let it flambé, then set the pears aside.
• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Roll the pastry out to the thickness of a £1 coin. Using a plate slightly larger than the top of the pan, cut out a circle, then press the edges of the circle of pastry to thin them out.
• When the pears have cooled slightly, arrange them in the pan, cut side up, in a floral shape, with the pears around the edge pointing inwards. Rest the cinnamon stick on the top in the centre, with the cardamom pods scattered around.
• Drape the pastry over the pears, then tuck the edges down the pan sides and under the fruit (see Gordon's guide). Pierce the pastry a few times, then bake for 15 mins. If a lot of juice bubbles up the side of the pan, pour it off at this stage (see guide). Reduce oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 and bake for 15 mins more until the pastry is golden. Leave the tart to stand for 10 mins, then invert it carefully onto a serving dish.

PEAR AND ALMOND TART

Steps:

• For pears:
• Bring 4 cups water, sugar, and lemon juice to boil in large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add pears. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until pears are very tender, turning occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool pears in syrup. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• For crust:
• Blend powdered sugar, almonds, and salt in processor until nuts are finely ground. Add butter and blend until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Mix in egg yolk. Add flour. Using on/off turns, blend until dough comes together in clumps. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 3 hours. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)
• For almond filling:
• Finely grind almonds and flour in processor. Mix in 7 tablespoons sugar, then butter, blending until smooth. Mix in egg. Transfer filling to medium bowl. Cover and chill at least 3 hours. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.)
• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Roll out chilled dough on floured sheet of parchment paper to 12-inch round, lifting and turning dough occasionally to free from paper. Using paper as aid, turn dough into 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom; peel off paper. Seal any cracks in dough. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang in, making double-thick sides. Pierce crust all over with fork. Freeze crust 10 minutes.
• Line crust with buttered foil, buttered side down, then fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake crust until sides are set, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Bake crust until sides are golden and bottom is set, pressing with back of fork if crust bubbles, about 10 minutes longer. Cool crust in pan on rack. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
• Spread almond filling evenly in crust. Stem pears and cut each in half lengthwise; scoop out cores. Cut each half crosswise into thin slices. Gently press each pear half to fan slices but keep slices tightly overlapped. Slide spatula under pears and arrange atop filling like spokes of wheel with narrow ends in center.
• Bake tart until golden and tester inserted into center of filling comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool tart in pan on rack. Push pan bottom up, releasing tart from pan. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Cut tart into wedges; sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired, and serve.