Pear Cranberry Pie With Faux Lattice Food

PEAR-CRANBERRY LATTICE PIE

Steps:

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and allspice. Add pears and cranberries; toss to coat. Spoon into crust; dot with butter., Roll out remaining pastry; make a lattice crust. Trim, seal and flute edges. , In a small bowl, whisk egg and milk; brush over pastry. Sprinkle with additional sugar. Cover pie loosely with foil to prevent overbrowning. , Bake at 450° for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and remove foil; bake for 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

PEAR-CRANBERRY PIE WITH FAUX LATTICE

Steps:

• On a lightly floured work surface, roll 1 disk of dough to 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Trim edges flush with rim. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• On a piece of lightly floured parchment paper, roll out remaining disk of dough to 1/8 inch thick. Top with an inverted 9-inch pie plate or a cake ring, and gently press to make a light indentation (this will be your guide for cutting the lattice to fit the pie). Using a 3/4-inch square cutter, cut a lattice pattern out of the round, leaving at least 1/2 inch between cutouts and edge of round. Transfer squares to a parchment-lined baking sheet. To make partial squares where the lattice meets the rounded edge, make a very light indentation with the cutter, then cut out the portion of the square that is inside the round with a knife. Using a paring knife or a pizza cutter, cut out the round, leaving an additional 1/2 inch of dough beyond the marked circle. Reroll scraps, and cut out as many additional squares as possible. Transfer parchment with the lattice top to a baking sheet. Refrigerate lattice top and squares for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with racks in middle and lower positions. Peel, halve, and core pears. Very thinly slice 3 pears lengthwise, and cut remaining 2 pears into 8 wedges each.
• Toss together pears, cranberries, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl. Using the tip of a paring knife, scrape vanilla seeds over pear mixture, and toss until seeds have been evenly incorporated. Pour filling into piecrust, gently pressing to make it as level as possible. Dot filling with butter.
• To make egg wash, whisk together egg yolk and cream in a small bowl. Lightly brush edge of piecrust with egg wash. Remove lattice crust and squares from refrigerator. Gently place another baking sheet on top of lattice, and carefully invert. Slide lattice on top of filling, and remove parchment. Gently press edges of crust to seal, trimming edges of lattice if necessary.
• Lightly brush lattice with egg wash. Arrange dough squares around edge of pie, overlapping them slightly. Lightly brush top of each square with egg wash as you work to help them adhere.
• Place a foil-lined baking sheet on lower oven rack to catch any juices. Place pie on middle rack, and bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling gently, 90 to 100 minutes. Tent with foil if crust browns too quickly. Let pie cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat preserves in a saucepan over medium heat until warm. Puree in a food processor until smooth. Press through a fine sieve into a bowl or another saucepan, and reheat if necessary. Brush warm pie with a generous amount of warm apricot glaze. Let cool completely on rack.

PEAR-CRANBERRY MINCEMEAT LATTICE PIE

Steps:

• Make mincemeat:
• Stir together all ingredients except pastry dough and chill in an airtight container, stirring at least once a day for at least 3 days.
• Make pie:
• Put oven rack in middle position. Put a large baking sheet on rack and preheat oven to 425°F.
• Roll out larger piece of dough (keep remaining piece chilled) on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 13-inch round, then fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim edge, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Chill shell while rolling out smaller piece of dough for top crust.
• Roll out smaller piece of dough on a lightly floured surface with lightly floured rolling pin into a roughly 16- by 11-inch rectangle. Cut crosswise into 12 (1-inch-wide) strips with a pastry wheel or a sharp knife. Stir mincemeat, then spoon into shell in an even layer. Weave a lattice pattern over pie with pastry strips.
• Trim edges of strips flush with edge of bottom crust. Fold bottom crust up over edges of lattice and decoratively crimp.
• Bake pie on hot baking sheet 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F and cover edge of pie with a pie shield or foil if it begins to brown too quickly. Continue to bake until crust is golden brown and filling begins to bubble around edge, about 1 hour more. Transfer pie to a rack and cool to warm or room temperature, about 2 hours. Serve pie warm or at room temperature.

PEAR-CRANBERRY PIE WITH FAUX LATTICE

Steps:

• On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 disk of dough to a 13-inch round, about 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate; trim dough flush with rim. Refrigerate or freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
• On lightly floured parchment, roll out remaining disk of dough as in step 1. Top with an inverted 9-inch pie plate, and gently press to make a light indentation. Using a 1-inch square cutter, cut lattice pattern out of round, leaving at least 1/2 inch between cutouts and edge of indented round. Transfer squares to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. For partial squares where lattice meets edge, make a very light indentation with cutter, then cut out portion inside round with a paring knife.
• Using a paring knife, cut out the round, leaving an additional 1/2 inch dough beyond indented circle. Reroll scraps; cut out as many additional squares as possible, and transfer to baking sheet. Transfer parchment with cutout top to another baking sheet. Refrigerate both 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F, with rack in lower position. Peel and core pears. Very thinly slice 2 pears lengthwise; cut remaining 2 pears into 8 wedges each.
• In a bowl, toss together pears, cranberries, brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Pour into pie shell; gently press to make level. Dot with butter. Whisk together egg yolk and cream; lightly brush over edge of pie shell. Gently place another baking sheet on top of chilled lattice (still on parchment); carefully invert. Slide lattice on top of filling, centering; remove parchment. Gently press edges of crust to seal; trim dough, if necessary.
• Lightly brush lattice with egg wash. Arrange dough squares around edge of pie, overlapping slightly. Lightly brush top of each square with egg wash as you work. Refrigerate 15 minutes. Bake pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 90 minutes. (Tent with foil if crust browns too quickly.) Let cool on a wire rack 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat preserves in a saucepan over medium until loose. Pass through a fine sieve into a bowl. Brush warm pie all over with glaze. Let pie cool completely on wire rack.

PEAR CRANBERRY PIE

Steps:

• For the crust
• Place the butter, shortening and cranberry juice into the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour salt and sugar by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add the butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until the texture looks mealy. Add the shortening and pulse another 3 to 4 times until incorporated.
• Remove the lid of the food processor and sprinkle in 5 tablespoons of the cranberry juice. Replace the lid and pulse 5 times. Add more cranberry juice as needed, and pulse again until the mixture holds together when squeezed. Weight the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
• Peel and core the pears. Slice into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick wedges. Toss all of the pears with 1/4 cup of the sugar, place in a colander set over a large bowl and allow to drain for 1 1/2 hours.
• Transfer the drained liquid to a small saucepan, place over medium heat and reduce to 2 tablespoons. Set aside to cool. Toss the pears with the remaining sugar, cranberries, tapioca flour, jam, cranberry juice, lemon juice, salt and nutmeg.
• For assembling and baking the pie:
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove 1 disk of dough from the refrigerator. Place the dough onto a lightly floured piece of waxed paper. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and roll out into a 12-inch circle. Place into a 9 1/2 to 10-inch tart pan that is 2 inches deep. Gently press the dough into the sides of the pan, crimping and trimming the edges as necessary. Set a pie bird in the center of the bottom of the pan. Place the pears into the unbaked pie shell in concentric circles starting around the edges, working towards the center and forming a slight mound in the center of the pie. Sprinkle the cranberries a little at a time as you go.
• Pour over any liquid that remains in the bowl. Roll out the second pie dough as the first. Place this dough over the apples, pressing the pie bird through the top crust. Press together the edges of the dough around the rim of the pie. Brush the top crust with the reduced juice everywhere except around the edge of the pie. Trim excess dough. Place the pie on a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake on the floor of the oven for 30 minutes. Transfer to the lower rack of the oven and continue to bake another 20 minutes or until the pears are cooked through but not mushy. Remove to a rack and cool a minimum of 4 hours or until almost room temperature.

CRANBERRY PEAR PIE

Steps:

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry; trim and flute edges. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour, syrup and butter until smooth. Add pears and cranberries; toss to coat. Spoon into crust., For topping, combine the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon; cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in walnuts. Sprinkle over filling. , Cover edges of crust loosely with foil to prevent overbrowning. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°. Remove foil; bake 35-40 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

CRANBERRY PEAR CLAFOUTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375. Butter a 9 inch glass pie plate.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar till lightly colored.
• Whisk in the flour and half and half. Stir in the melted butter.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared pie plate.
• Arrange the pears in the batter (you can leave the pears in halves, but I cubed mine) and surround with cranberries.
• If desired, dust top with sugar and cinnamon (or whatever spices you like - I added in some allspice as well).
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or till the pears are tender and the custard is lightly browned.
• Cool slightly and serve.
• (The original recipe says this serves 6-8, but 3 of us polished it off at breakfast quite easily).

PEAR AND CRANBERRY TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Cover cranberries with very hot water and let stand 10 minutes. Drain.
• Melt butter in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add pears and 1 tbsp sugar, cooking 2 to 4 minutes or until softened but not falling apart. Reserve.
• On a floured counter using a floured rolling pin, roll pastry into an approximately10 x 10-inch square. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Prick all over with a fork. Place pears in the centre of pastry and flatten them out into an even layer, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle with cranberries. Fold pastry edges up over the edge of pears. Brush edges of pastry with beaten egg, then sprinkle sugar over pastry and pears. Bake 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F (175°C) and bake another 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are puffed and golden.
• Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.