Poached Pear Galettes Recipes

Steps:

• To poach the pears, bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from the heat and add the ginger and black tea bags; let steep 10 minutes. Squeeze the bags against the side of the pan, then discard them. Stir in the sugar, honey, peppercorns, ginger and lemon peel and bring to a simmer. Add the pears and additional water to cover the pears, if needed. Simmer, turning the pears occasionally, until just tender all the way through, 20 to 22 minutes. Let cool in the liquid. Halve and core the pears and pat dry. Slice the pears into 1/4-inch slices. (You'll get 6 or 7 slices from each pear.)
• Heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Unroll the pie crust on a floured work surface and roll to a 14-inch circle. Center on a parchment-lined baking sheet (it's OK if it overhangs at this point). Spread the leeks on the crust in a 9-inch circle. Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Top with the pears in a spiral. Fold over and pleat the edges of the dough, leaving the center of the galette open. Brush the dough with the beaten egg.
• Bake the galette until the juices are bubbling and the pastry is golden brown and crisp, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove to a baking rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with the chives, if using.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine lemon zest, cinnamon stick, allspice, ground pepper, apple cider, and water.
• Add pears. Cover with waxed paper to prevent discoloring. Bring to a simmer. Cook, turning pears occasionally, until easily pierced with the tip of a paring knife, but not falling apart, about 20 minutes. Remove pears from liquid; transfer to large bowl.
• Raise heat to high; boil cider mixture until reduced to a syrup, about 15 minutes. Discard cinnamon. Pour syrup over pears; refrigerate. To serve, slice off a sliver from the bottom of each pear (so it stands upright). Serve pears with lemon sorbet, if desired.

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat.
• Sprinkle work surface with flour. Roll out dough to a 14-inch round, about 1/4-inch thick. Transfer dough to prepared baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 1 hour.
• In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch, sugar and salt. In a large bowl gently toss together pears and cornstarch mixture until evenly coated. Mound pear mixture on top of dough, leaving a 4-inch border all the way around. Fold dough over pear mixture, overlapping where necessary and gently pressing to adhere the folds. Transfer galette to refrigerator and let chill, 20 to 30 minutes
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, beat egg. Brush edges of dough with egg, and sprinkle edges with sanding sugar. Dot top of galette with butter. Transfer to oven and bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, place apricot jam in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until heated through; strain through a mesh sieve set over a bowl. Remove baking sheet from oven and transfer to a wire rack; brush heated jam over pears. Let cool briefly before serving warm or at room temperature.