Poached Pear Tart

INGREDIENTS

Cinnamon Crust
2 cups All purpose flour
1/2 cup Confectioners Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 cup Unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
Filling
5 pears
2 cups Red wine
1/2 cup Granulated sugar
1/2 cup Heavy cream
1/3 cup Almond paste
1/3 cup Granulated sugar
2 Eggs

Servings

INSTRUCTIONS

Peel, core and halve the pears. In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring the wine and 1/2 cup granulated sugar just to a boil. Add the pears and cook over medium heat until the pears are fork-tender, 10-15 minutes. Set aside to let the pears cool in the wine mixture.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

To make the crust, place the flour, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla extract in a food processor. Turn the machine on and slowly add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time. Add the salt and cinnamon and process until the dough forms a ball on top of the blades.

Press the dough into a 12-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Prebake the crust about 10 minutes or until light brown. Set aside to cool.

Slice the pears lengthwise and arrange them in the crust in slightly overlapping concentric circles. Set aside. Freeze the wine mixture for another use or discard it.

Blend the cream, almond paste, and 1/3 cup granulated sugar in the food processor until smooth. Add the eggs and almond extract and mix well. Pour the mixture slowly over the pears, making sure that you can still see the arranged pears underneath. Bake the tart for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of the custard comes out clean.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes: This recipe calls for a very large tart pan, but it could be cut down to fit a smaller tart pan or even a shallow pie pan. The amount of custard was modified from the original recipe because it completely covered the pears and ruined the beautiful effect of the arranged fruit. Now I stop pouring in the custard before it completely covers the fruit. Also, the original recipe called for almond extract in addition to almond paste, but I found this to be too much flavoring.

If you can't find almond paste at the store, you can substitute 1/3 cup of finely ground roasted almond plus about 1 to 1.5 tsp of almond extract.

NOTES

This recipe calls for a very large tart pan, but it could be cut down to fit a smaller tart pan or even a shallow pie pan. The amount of custard was modified from the original recipe because it completely covered the pears and ruined the beautiful effect of the arranged fruit. Now I stop pouring in the custard before it completely covers the fruit. Also, the original recipe called for almond extract in addition to almond paste, but I found this to be too much flavoring.

If you can't find almond paste at the store, you can substitute 1/3 cup of finely ground roasted almond plus about 1 to 1.5 tsp of almond extract.

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Poached Pear Tart

Cinnamon Crust 
2 cups All purpose flour 
1/2 cup Confectioners Sugar 
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract 
1 cup Unsalted butter 
1/2 teaspoon Salt 
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon 
  Filling 
5  pears 
2 cups Red wine 
1/2 cup Granulated sugar 
1/2 cup Heavy cream 
1/3 cup Almond paste 
1/3 cup Granulated sugar 
2  Eggs

Peel, core and halve the pears.  In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring the wine and 1/2 cup granulated sugar just to a boil.  Add the pears and cook over medium heat until the pears are fork-tender, 10-15 minutes.  Set aside to let the pears cool in the wine mixture.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

To make the crust, place the flour, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla extract in a food processor.  Turn the machine on and slowly add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time.  Add the salt and cinnamon and process until the dough forms a ball on top of the blades.

Press the dough into a 12-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.  Prebake the crust about 10 minutes or until light brown.  Set aside to cool.

Slice the pears lengthwise and arrange them in the crust in slightly overlapping concentric circles.  Set aside.  Freeze the wine mixture for another use or discard it.

Blend the cream, almond paste, and 1/3 cup granulated sugar in the food processor until smooth.  Add the eggs and almond extract and mix well.  Pour the mixture slowly over the pears, making sure that you can still see the arranged pears underneath.  Bake the tart for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of the custard comes out clean.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes:  This recipe calls for a very large tart pan, but it could be cut down to fit a smaller tart pan or even a shallow pie pan.  The amount of custard was modified from the original recipe because it completely covered the pears and ruined the beautiful effect of the arranged fruit.  Now I stop pouring in the custard before it completely covers the fruit.  Also, the original recipe called for almond extract in addition to almond paste, but I found this to be too much flavoring.

If you can't find almond paste at the store, you can substitute 1/3 cup of finely ground roasted almond plus about 1 to 1.5 tsp of almond extract.

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Nutrition

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Serving Size: 1 Serving (246g)
Recipe Makes: 12 Servings

Calories: 459
Calories from Fat: 175 (38%)

Amt Per Serving		% DV

	Total Fat 19.4g	26 %
	Saturated Fat 11.2g	56 %
	Monounsaturated Fat 5.7g
	Polyunsanturated Fat 1.1g
Cholesterol 48.3mg		15 %
Sodium 31.5mg		1 %
Potassium 270.3mg		7 %
Total Carbohydrate 54.9g		16 %
	Dietary Fiber 3.2g	13 %
	Sugars, other 51.6g
Protein 4g		6 %
Powered by: USDA Nutrition Database Disclaimer: Nutrition facts are derived from linked ingredients (shown at left in colored bullets) and may or may not be complete. Always consult a licensed nutritionist or doctor if you have a nutrition-related medical condition.

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Calories per serving: 459

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