Brandied Sour Cherry And Pear Tartlets Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Butter a 10 x 3 x 1 1/2-inch round baking dish and sprinkle the bottom and sides with 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar.
• Beat the eggs and the 1/3 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, mix in the flour, cream, vanilla extract, lemon zest, salt, and pear brandy. Set aside for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, peel, quarter, core, and slice the pears. Arrange the slices in a single layer, slightly fanned out, in the baking dish. Pour the batter over the pears and bake until the top is golden brown and the custard is firm, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with confectioners' sugar, and creme fraiche.

Steps:

• Blend together flour, salt, butter, shortening, and 2 tablespoons sugar with your fingertips or a pastry blender in a large bowl (or pulse in a food processor, then transfer to a large bowl) just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Drizzle evenly with 1/2 cup ice water and gently stir with a fork until incorporated.
• Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring until just incorporated, then test again. (Do not overwork mixture, or pastry will be tough.)
• Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 8 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together with scraper and divide into 2 balls, one slightly larger than the other, then flatten each into a 5- to 6-inch disk. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Peel, halve, and core pears. Cut pears into 1/4-inch dice, then stir together with remaining filling ingredients in a 3-quart heavy pot. Bring to a boil, stirring, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 10 minutes. Transfer filling to a shallow dish and cool to room temperature.
• Roll out smaller disk of dough into a 13-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick) on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin, lifting up dough carefully and flouring surface as necessary to keep dough from sticking.
• Cut out as many rounds as possible (about 12) with 3 1/2-inch fluted cutter, transferring as cut to a wax-paper-lined baking sheet. Chill rounds until firm, about 10 minutes, before decorating. Gather dough scraps and chill 20 to 30 minutes, then reroll, cut, and chill additional 31/2-inch rounds (reroll scraps only once) for a total of 16.
• Cut out shapes from rounds with decorative cutters or a sharp paring knife, leaving a 1/2-inch border around edge, and reserve cutout pieces if desired for additional decoration. Brush tops lightly with milk. Lightly press reserved cutouts (if using) onto decorated pastry rounds and brush lightly with milk. Sprinkle remaining tablespoon sugar evenly over tops and chill while making bottoms.
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Roll out larger disk of dough into a 15-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick) on floured surface with floured rolling pin, lifting up dough carefully and flouring surface as necessary to keep dough from sticking. Cut out as many rounds as possible (about 12) with 4-inch cutter. Gather dough scraps and chill 20 to 30 minutes, then reroll and cut additional 4-inch rounds (reroll scraps only once) for a total of 16. Fit each 4-inch round into a tartlet pan (don't trim). Fill each tartlet with 3 tablespoons cooled filling and brush edge of pastry lightly with milk. Place decorated tops over filling in each tartlet, then press each top lightly around edge to help seal edges and trim pastry if necessary.
• Bake tartlets on a large baking sheet until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tartlets to a rack and cool 10 minutes. To remove tartlets from pans, cover 1 hand with a folded kitchen towel and invert tartlets 1 at a time onto towel, reinverting them onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper.
• Arrange tart shells onto prepared pan. Put a piece of Brie cheese into each shell. Sprinkle diced pear and a couple thyme leaves into each shell and drizzle with honey.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese is melted and tarts are golden, 12 to 15 minutes.

Steps:

• Trace outline of 1 pear half onto a piece of parchment paper. Cut out pear template. Set template aside.
• Mix 5 cups apple juice, brown sugar, molasses, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg in heavy large saucepan. Cover and bring to simmer. Add pears and return mixture to simmer. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer slowly until pears are tender when pierced with knife, about 20 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pears to plate. Boil poaching liquid in saucepan until reduced to generous 1 cup, about 25 minutes. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Place cold pastry on work surface. Using template as guide, cut 8 pear shapes from pastry. Place pastry cutouts on prepared baking sheet. Brush with egg glaze; sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Bake until pastry is golden, about 15 minutes. Cool on baking sheet.
• Transfer 1/2 cup pear poaching liquid to large metal bowl. Whisk in egg yolks and 2 tablespoons brandy. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bowl to touch water). Using handheld electric mixer, beat until sabayon is thick and foamy and thermometer registers 160°F, about 4 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. (Pears, poaching liquid, pastries and sabayon can be prepared 1 day ahead. Store pastries in airtight container. Cover pears, poaching liquid and sabayon separately and refrigerate. Before serving, bring poaching liquid to room temperature. Rewarm sabayon in glass bowl in microwave on high for about 1 minute, whisking every 10 seconds.)
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Rewarm pastries in oven for 5 minutes. Place 1 pastry on each plate. Arrange 1 poached pear half off-center atop each pastry. Spoon reduced poaching liquid around pastries. Spoon sabayon atop pears.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. On a lightly floured surface, roll pastry dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim pastry to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Refrigerate while preparing filling., In a large bowl, toss pears and cherries with lemon juice and extract. In a small bowl, mix sugar and cornstarch; add to pear mixture, tossing to coat. Transfer to pastry-lined pie plate., For topping, in a small bowl, mix flour and sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in almonds. Sprinkle over filling., Bake 50-60 minutes or until golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cover edge loosely with foil during the last 15 minutes if needed to prevent overbrowning. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Make filling:
• Peel pears and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Cook pears, cherries, brown sugar, and rosemary in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring, until pears are tender, about 20 minutes.
• Stir together lemon juice and cornstarch in a small cup and stir into pear mixture. Cook, stirring, 1 minute, or until thickened. Transfer filling to a bowl and cool completely.
• Prepare shell while filling cooks and cools:
• Roll out larger disk of pastry dough into a 13-inch round on a lightly floured surface, keeping remaining disk chilled, and fit into a 10-inch round tart pan (1 inch deep) with a removable fluted rim. Roll rolling pin over top of pan to trim dough flush with rim, then lightly prick bottom all over with a fork. Chill shell 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425°F and place a large baking sheet in middle of oven.
• Roll out remaining dough into a 12-inch round on a lightly floured surface and with leaf-shaped cutter cut out as many leaves as possible.
• Fill and bake tart:
• Spoon filling into tart shell, smoothing top, and decorate with pastry leaves. Brush leaves and pastry rim with some beaten egg.
• Bake tart on preheated baking sheet in middle of oven until pastry leaves are golden, about 50 minutes. (If pastry rim gets too brown, tent rim with foil or a pie shield.)
• Cool tart in pan on a rack at least 1 hour.

Steps:

• To make the hard sauce, in a medium bowl set an electric mixer on high and beat the butter until fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add confectioners' sugar. When the sugar is incorporated, set the speed back to high. Add the brandy 1 tablespoon at a time and beat until combined. Beat in the nutmeg. Transfer the sauce to a ramekin or bowl, cover and refrigerate. Hard sauce can be made at least a week ahead, but allow it to come to room temperature before serving (about 20 minutes).
• To make the brown betty, heat the Cognac or brandy in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the liquid has come to a simmer, turn off the heat and add the cherries. Allow them to absorb most of the liquid, about 20 minutes.
• While cherries are standing, heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the sugar mixture for sprinkling. Add bread, butter and lemon zest. Toss until sugar has dissolved and bread is completely coated.
• In a shallow 1 1/2-quart gratin dish (or a 9-by-9-inch pan), scatter a little under half the bread cubes. Layer half the pear slices and half the cherries (along with any liquid) on top. Cover with a cup of bread crumbs and sprinkle with 1 1/2 tablespoons cider. Layer remaining pears, cherries and bread. Sprinkle top with remaining cider and reserved sugar-and-spice mixture.
• Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes. Take off foil and continue baking, until crumbs are golden brown and pears are very soft, about 15 minutes more. Serve warm with dollops of hard sauce.