MiNDFOOD PARED BACK TART
To save time, you can use store-bought shortcrust pastry and canned pears, Our suggestion? Make two, it’s delicious.
Poaching liquid for pears
½ orange sliced
½ lemon sliced
1 stick cinnamon
5 star anise
6 cloves
6 black peppercorns
2 cans of pear quarters in juice
2 sheets sweet shortcrust pastry
Crumble
120 gm butter
½ cup soft brown sugar
160 gm plain flour
1 tsp Vanilla essence
Pinch ground cinnamon
¼ lemon, zested
Tart filling/ batter
2 eggs room temp
145 gm soft brown sugar
35 gm plain flour
125 gm unsalted butter
Method
Pour pear juice into a medium pot and set aside fruit
Add remaining ingredients to pear juice and bring to the boil over a medium heat, allowing to infuse for 20 minutes
Reduce heat, and add the pears to the liquid to poach for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool
Line a pie dish (9” or 22 cm x 3.5 cm) with pastry and ensure that you overlap the dough on the top edge
Rest in the fridge for 40 minutes
Bake blind at 180 deg C until a light golden colour (approximately 20 minutes)
To make the crumble, melt butter
Add melted butter to the rest of the ingredients and mix until it forms a crumble
To make the tart filling, whisk on high speed the eggs, sugar and flour until pale
Melt the butter and then continue to cook it until a nut-brown butter is achieved
Place the mixer onto speed 1 and slowly add the brown butter, mix until just incorporated
To assemble
Arrange the sliced pears in the tart ring with the bottom of the pear at the edge of the tart
Pour the tart filling on top of the pears
Sprinkle the crumble on top of the filling mixture
Bake at 160 deg C in a fan oven for approx. 45 minutes
Check the tart to see if it is cooked by placing a wooden skewer into the centre and comes out clean
Remove from the oven and with a thin small knife, trim the top edge of the sweet paste off
Allow to cool, add a light dusting of icing sugar and serve with soft whipped Chantilly cream and or vanilla ice cream