Delicious Poached Pear Tart Recipe to Try at Home!
Ever looked at our mouth-watering pastry counter and wished you could do that at home? Well, our head pastry chef Pierre has given us one of his recipes to share with you all, so you can! Watch the man himself in action on our Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/TheGroundsofAlexandria, and then try it out at home. Why not hashtag us on instagram with #thegrounds so we can see all your creations. Good luck!
Poached Pears:
700ml red wine
300ml water
300g sugar
1 star anise
1 cinnamon quill
3 cardamon pods
1 vanilla bean split in half
6 small pears
Bring all ingredients to the boil while stirring to dissolve the sugar. Boil for 2 minutes then reduce to a simmer. Peel and core the pears, then add to the poaching liquid. Simmer gently until a knife slides easily through the pear. Set aside to cool.
Shortbread Pastry:
150g sugar
120g cold butter, diced
¼ tsp vanilla paste
1 extra large egg
1 tbsp milk
¼ tsp bicarb soda
300g plain flour
Sift together the flour sugar and bicarb soda. In a bowl whisk the vanilla, egg and milk lightly to combine. Using your fingers or a food processor, rub the cold butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in the egg mixture, knead lightly until the dough is just combined. Note, over kneading the dough will cause your tart shells to shrink later on and be tough. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Almond Cream:
200g plain flour
200g almond meal
200g butter at room temperature
200g icing sugar sifted
1 extra large egg
In an electric mixer on a slow speed, mix together all of the ingredients until evenly combined.
Apricot Glaze:
1 cup smooth apricot jam
¼ cup water
Melt together on the stove and set aside until needed.
Bringing it together:
1. Preheat your oven to 160ºc.
2. Remove the pears from the liquid and cut slits 1 cm wide through the pears from top to bottom, leaving the pear held together only by the top.
3. To assemble the tarts, roll the pastry out to 3mm thick using only as much flour as is necessary to stop it from sticking. Cut into circles then prick the pastry with a fork. Line 6 individual tart rings with the pastry circles.
4. Spoon a small amount of almond cream into each shell, place pear on top and twist down into the tart.
5. Bake at 160ºc for 20 minutes or until the top of the almond cream goes golden brown.
6. Brush the tarts with hot apricot glaze and leave to cool.
Last step is to enjoy! You deserve it!