Roasted Seckel Pears With Vanilla Mascarpone Cream And Thyme Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Arrange the pears cut side up in an 8-inch square glass baking dish. Whisk the apple juice and sugar in a small heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until the sugar dissolves. Whisk in the butter. Pour the sauce over the pears. Bake until the pears are crisp-tender and beginning to brown, basting occasionally with the juices, about 35 minutes.
• Spoon the pears onto plates. Top with ice cream. Drizzle with any juices and serve.
• The pears can also be served frozen. To do so, cool the pears, then place them in the freezer until frozen solid, about 8 hours.

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.

Steps:

• Make shell:
• Roll out dough on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a 20-by 8-inch rectangle, reflouring surface as necessary. Transfer to tart pan, gently fitting dough into pan without stretching. Trim overhang to 3/4 inch, cutting off corners. Fold overhang inward to reinforce side, then trim flush with edge of pan. Reserve excess pastry for another use if desired. Prick bottom of tart shell all over with a fork and chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.
• Line shell with foil and fill with pie weights, then bake until sides are set, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake shell until golden brown all over, 15 to 20 minutes more. Cool completely in pan.
• Poach pears:
• Put wine in a wide 4-quart pot and set a sieve lined with dampened flour sack cloth over it. Grate Bartlett pears (including skin) on large holes of a box grater into cloth, then bunch up cloth around mixture and squeeze as much clear juice as possible through cloth into pan with wine. Discard solids remaining in cloth. Transfer wine mixture to a 2-cup measure and add enough water, if necessary, to bring total to 2 cups liquid, then return to pan and stir in sugar.
• Carefully peel Seckel pears, leaving stems intact, then core through bottom with tip of vegetable peeler or a small knife to remove seeds.
• Bring wine mixture to a boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved, then add pears, in 1 layer if possible. Simmer, tightly covered, turning occasionally, until tender, about 20 minutes. Carefully transfer pears with a slotted spoon to a rack set over a 4-sided sheet pan to drain and cool, standing them upright. Transfer pear syrup to cleaned 2-cup measure, adding any juices from sheet pan under pears (you will have 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups syrup), and reserve for pastry cream and glaze.
• Make pastry cream:
• Whisk together egg yolks and cornstarch in a small bowl, then whisk in 1 cup pear syrup. Transfer to a small heavy saucepan and scrape in seeds from vanilla bean, reserving pod for another use. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, then cook, whisking, 2 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in poire William and butter. Transfer to a bowl and cool completely, its surface covered.
• Make glaze:
• Stir together poire William and gelatin in a very small bowl and let stand 1 minute.
• Bring remaining pear syrup to a boil in a very small heavy saucepan, then boil, if necessary, until reduced to about 1/3 cup. Stir in gelatin mixture until dissolved. Remove from heat.
• Remove side of tart pan. Whisk cooled pastry cream to loosen, then spread in shell. Stand pears upright on pastry cream, arranging them in 8 rows of 2 or 3.
• When glaze has cooled and thickened slightly (to speed cooling, set pan in an ice bath), brush it on pears. If glaze gels in pan, reheat very briefly.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F. Slice off the bottom of each pear just enough so it will stand upright. Using a melon baller or small spoon, remove the seeds from the bottom. Peel the upper half, leaving the stem intact; pat dry with a paper towel. Rub butter over the peeled part of each pear; stand the pears in a small baking dish (about 7 × 11 inches). Sprinkle with the sugar.
• Pour the wine into the baking dish; add the thyme sprigs, if using. Bake until the pears are soft when pierced with a paring knife and well browned, about 45 minutes; using a small spoon, baste the pears occasionally with the wine, adding a bit of water as needed to prevent the liquid from evaporating. Remove from the oven.
• 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.
• Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl, and stir together with a wooden spoon.

Steps:

• For dressing:
• Whisk all ingredients in small bowl to blend. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
• For pears and salad:
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Scatter thyme sprigs on rimmed baking sheet. Place pear halves, cut side down, on work surface. Starting 1/2 inch from stem and leaving pear half intact, cut each lengthwise into scant 1/3- to 1/2-inch-wide slices. Press pear gently to fan slices; place atop thyme sprigs. Drizzle pears with honey; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until pears are tender, about 15 minutes. Let stand on baking sheet at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours.
• Combine lettuce and arugula in large bowl. Add dressing and toss to coat. Divide salad among plates. Place pear alongside greens. Garnish salads with cheese; sprinkle with nuts.