Nutty Pear Tart

Sweet Pastry

2.5 cups all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

2/3 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup powder sugar

2 eggs, beaten

Makes 1 LB 6 oz

Sift the flour and salt onto a work surface and make a well in the center. Place the butter into the well and work with your fingers with a pecking action, until it is soft. Add sugar to the butter and mix. Next add the eggs to the butter mixture.

Slowly incorporate the flour until you have rough dough. Knead a few minutes to make smooth dough. Roll into a ball, wrap in plastic and let it rest in the refrigerator at least 1 hour.

Roll out the sweet pastry into a circle on a lightly floured surface. Line your 9 inch tart pan with the pastry and trim the edge and pinch around the edge to make and even border. Use a fork to poke holes in the bottom of the shell. Place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.

Make sure you rest the pastry as required!

Nutty Pear Tart

9 inch round loose-bottom fluted tart pan

1 batch sweet pastry dough

1/4 cup fine sugar

Few drops of vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean split

3 pears peeled, halved and cored

Place the sugar and vanilla in a sauce pan. Add the pears and add water just to cover. Bring to simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Add the pears and simmer for 5-10 minutes until tender. Drain and cool.

Filling

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup sugar

Few drops of vanilla extract

2 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup finely chopped almond (pecan or walnuts)

Finely grated lemon zest (1 lemon)

3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

Beat the butter, vanilla extract and sugar until pale and creamy. Next add the beaten the eggs and then fold in the nuts, lemon zest, and flour.

Line the pastry shell with wax paper and baking beads (dried beans or rice if you don’t have the beads). Bake the shell for 10 minutes in a preheated oven at 375 degrees. Remove the wax paper and beads (beans or rice) and bake for an additional 3-5 minutes. Remove and reduce the oven to 350 degrees.  Let cool.

Spread about three-quarters of the filling in the bottom of the shell. Next add the pears, cut side down and the stem end of the pear facing in. Fill in the gaps with the rest of the filling. Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the filling is firm and golden brown.