Pear Gratin With Mascarpone Custard Food

FRUIT GRATIN WITH CALVADOS AND MASCARPONE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Halve apples lengthwise (quarter if large), leaving stem intact, and core halves with melon-ball cutter. Halve Seckel and Forelle pears or quarter Bartletts lengthwise, then core with melon-ball cutter and trim root ends.
• Melt butter in a 14- by 9-inch oval gratin dish or other 2 1/2- to 3-quart shallow baking dish in middle of oven, about 2 minutes. Stir in Calvados and 3 tablespoons brown sugar, then add fresh and dried fruit and zest and turn gently to coat. Cover dish tightly with foil and bake in middle of oven, gently turning fruit and basting occasionally with juices, until apples and pears are tender but not falling apart, about 1 hour. Remove dish from oven.
• Preheat broiler.
• Spoon 1/3 cup baking juices from baking dish into a bowl and stir in mascarpone and remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Rearrange fruit, cut sides up, in baking dish to form an even layer, if necessary, and spoon mascarpone mixture over fruit. Put confectioners sugar in a fine-mesh sieve and sift over fruit. Broil gratin 3 inches from heat until confectioners sugar is caramelized, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Available in Italian markets and many supermarkets.

PEAR MASCARPONE CUSTARD

Steps:

• Position oven rack in the middle of oven; preheat oven to 375°; lightly butter and 11 x 7 inch baking dish.
• Drain the pear halves, reserving 3/4 cup of the syrup.
• Put pear halves on a cutting surface, flat side down, and score the rounded side with shallow, crosswise cuts; arrange the pears in the prepared baking dish.
• Add flour and sugar to a blender or food processor; blend or process until combined.
• Add in the mascarpone, eggs, vanilla, reserved pear syrup, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• Blend/process until the batter is smooth, about 20 seconds.
• Pour batter over the fruit; sprinkle with the brown sugar.
• Bake custard until puffy and light brown and the center is set when gently shaken, about 25-30 minutes.
• Remove from oven and cool on a baking rack for 5-10 minutes; serve warm.

APPLE AND PEAR GRATIN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9-inch baking dish that is at least 2 inches deep or a 9-inch springform pan.
• Put the whole eggs plus the egg yolks and the sugar in the bowl of a mixer. Beat at high speed until you see pale yellow ribbons form.
• Mix in the rum and vanilla. Add the flour and mix well. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
• In the clean mixer bowl, whip the heavy cream to firm peaks, then fold it carefully into the egg mixture with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the buttered dish.
• Peel and core the apple and pear and slice them crosswise into thin half-moons. Arrange over the batter in the baking dish, alternating the apple and pear slices. Do not be concerned if they sink into the mixture; they eventually will end up embedded in it. Place in the pre-heated oven and bake until the top has turned golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Serve warm or chilled.

RED WINE POACHED PEARS WITH VANILLA BEAN CUSTARD

Steps:

• For the pears: Remove a large strip of peel from the lemon and set aside. Squeeze the juice of the lemon into a medium bowl filled with water. Peel, halve and core the pears, adding the pears to the lemon water as you work (this will prevent them from browning).
• Combine the wine, sugar, vanilla, cloves, cinnamon stick and reserved lemon peel in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Remove the pears from the lemon water and add to the wine mixture. Boil the pears until tender, 8 to 10 minutes on each side. Remove the pears from the poaching liquid to a wire rack to cool. If desired, continue to boil the poaching liquid until syrupy, about 10 minutes.
• For the vanilla bean custard sauce: Combine the cream and milk in a medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add to the cream mixture along with the scraped bean. Place over medium heat until bubbles form around the edges, then remove from the heat and remove the vanilla bean.
• Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl until combined. Gradually add a little of the hot cream mixture, whisking constantly until combined. Gradually add the remaining cream, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 6 minutes. Remove the custard from the saucepan and cool slightly.
• To serve, spoon some of the custard sauce onto serving plates and top each with a pear half. Dollop with whipped cream and sprinkle with candied pecans, if desired.

PEASE PORRIDGE

Steps:

• Place peas in a bowl and cover with water to a depth of 2 inches above the peas. Set aside to steep six hours or overnight. Drain peas and place in a soup kettle.
• Add bacon, carrots, onions and turnips and stir to mix well. Cover with water to a depth of 1 inch above the mixture. Add sage.
• Place over medium-low heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat until soup is barely simmering, cover and simmer 2 to 3 hours or until peas lose their shape and start to become creamy. Add a little boiling water from time to time if necessary. You should have a thick soup, but not what we think of today as porridge.
• When soup is done, remove bacon chunks. Saute bacon in butter until brown on all sides.
• Add salt and pepper. Soup may be put through a sieve and cream may be added if desired to make it a bit richer.
• Serve garnished with the fried bacon chunks, sippets (triangles of thin crustless bread lightly fried in butter or bacon fat) and a little minced mint.

BAKED PEAR CUSTARD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Spray a 9" cake pan with cooking spray and place the pear slices in the pan.
• Whisk the butter, eggs, milk, salt, granulated sugar, flour and vanilla in a bowl until smooth.
• Pour the batter over the pears. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the custard is golden and firm to the touch. Dust the top with powdered sugar before serving.

PEAR GALETTE WITH MASCARPONE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine ricotta cheese, mascarpone cheese, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Place in the refrigerator.
• Place pears, cornstarch, lemon juice, brown sugar, cloves, and cinnamon into a bowl; mix well.
• Place thawed puff pastry sheet into the bottom of an 11-inch tart pan. Spoon cheese mixture onto pastry and spread evenly. Arrange spiced pear mixture on top of the cheese mixture.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 45 minutes.

BAKED PEARS WITH VANILLA MASCARPONE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Slice off bottom end of each pear just enough so that it will stand upright. Using a melon baller or small spoon, remove seeds from the bottom. Peel upper half, leaving stem intact, and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub butter over peeled part of each pear, and arrange pears in a small baking dish (about 7 by 11 inches) so they are standing. Sprinkle with the sugar.
• Pour wine into baking dish; add thyme sprigs, if using. Bake until pears are soft when pierced with a paring knife and well browned, about 45 minutes; using a small spoon, baste pears occasionally with the wine, adding a bit of water as needed to prevent liquid from evaporating. Remove from oven.
• To serve, spoon some of the pan juices into each serving dish, and place a pear on top. Serve with a dollop of mascarpone and several biscotti on the side.

SALTED CARAMEL PEAR CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 195C/175C fan/gas 5 ½. Butter and line the base of three 20cm round cake tins. Add the grated ginger to the grated pear and push down with a wooden spoon to squeeze out as much juice as possible.
• Mix the flours, spices, baking powder and 1 tsp salt in a bowl. In a stand mixer, vigorously whisk the eggs and sugars for 3 mins until thick and frothy. Slowly pour in the oil in a steady stream. Turn the speed down, then add the flour mixture, 2 tbsp at a time, alternating with the yogurt, until incorporated. Mix in the grated pear (for no longer than 20 secs). Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 25-30 mins or until a skewer inserted comes out dry.
• For the caramel, heat the pear juice and perry in a pan until reduced to about 50ml. Add the sugar and butter and whisk to a smooth caramel, then add the cream and whisk again until smooth. Add sea salt to your taste - I'd go for a generous pinch, so that the caramel is still fruity and sharp but has a little saltiness to it - then allow to cool slightly to just warmer than room temperature.
• To make the buttercream, put the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Place the bowl over a pan of boiling water, then whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is no longer gritty. Put the bowl in the mixer, then whisk until soft peaks form and the bowl returns to room temperature. Switch to the paddle attachment, then add the butter, one spoonful at a time. Add the tahini, vanilla and a pinch of salt, and beat to a light, fluffy icing.
• Place the bottom layer of sponge on a platter or cake stand, then top with a layer of the buttercream and scatter over a third of the chopped pear. Repeat with the next two layers. To ice the cake, do an intial layer all over, chill in the fridge for 20 mins, then use the remaining icing to cover everything. Use a stepped spatula to spread it out evenly. Pour the caramel over the top of the cake, and allow it to drip down the sides. Scatter with toasted buckwheat, dehydrated pear and rosemary, if you like.