Pear Apple And Quince Crostata Recipes

PEAR AND APPLE CROSTATA WITH FIVE-SPICE WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• for crust:
• Mix both flours, sugar and salt in processor. Add butter and shortening. Using on/off turns, process until butter and shortening form pea-size pieces. Mix in enough ice water to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Can be prepared 3 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)
• for filling:
• Position rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 400°F. Combine first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Toss to blend. Let stand until juices form, about 15 minutes.
• Roll out dough on lightly floured work surface to 1 1/2-inch round. Transfer dough to unrimmed baking sheet. Mound filling atop dough, leaving 2-inch border. Fold dough border over filling to form 7-inch round, pleating loosely and pinching to seal any cracks in dough. Brush crust and fruit with egg, then sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar.
• Bake crostata until crust is golden and juices bubble thickly, about 40 minutes. Transfer baking sheet to rack; cool 10 minutes. Slide metal spatula under crust to free from baking sheet. Cool crostata to lukewarm. Using large tart pan bottom as aid, transfer crostata to platter.
• Whip cream, honey and five-spice powder in medium bowl until stiff. Serve crostata lukewarm or at room temperature with whipped cream.
• *A blend of ground anise, cinnamon, star anise, cloves and ginger, available in the spice section of most supermarkets.

PEAR, APPLE, AND QUINCE CROSTATA

Steps:

• Make roasted fruit:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Peel, quarter, and core pears, apples, and quince, then cut into 1-inch chunks. Toss fruit with sugar, lemon juice, ginger, cinnamon stick, cloves, and 1 tablespoon apple cider in a bowl. Transfer to a large shallow baking pan (17 by 12 inches) and roast, stirring once or twice, until fruit is very soft and caramelized, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.
• Remove from oven and add remaining tablespoon apple cider, scraping up caramelized juices from bottom of baking pan. Discard cinnamon stick and cloves. Cool in pan on a rack, about 45 minutes.
• Make pastry shell while fruit roasts:
• Whisk together flour, salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl. Blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Drizzle evenly with 6 tablespoons ice water and gently stir with a fork (or pulse) until incorporated.
• Squeeze a small handful: If dough doesn't hold together, add more ice water to dough, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until just combined. (Do not overwork mixture, or pastry will be tough.)
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather all of dough together with scraper and press into a ball, then flatten into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 14-inch round, then fit into tart pan (do not trim).
• Make brown sugar filling:
• Put a large baking sheet in middle of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Beat together butter and sugars in a large bowl using an electric mixer at high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low, then add flour and a pinch of salt and mix until just combined. Spread evenly in pastry shell.
• Assemble and bake pastry:
• Scatter roasted fruit with juices over filling. Fold edge of pastry over filling to partially cover (center won't be covered). Pleat dough as necessary. Brush folded pastry edge lightly with egg and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon sugar.
• Bake on preheated baking sheet until filling is puffed and set and pastry is golden brown, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool to warm, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove side of tart pan and slide crostata onto a plate.

PEAR AND FRANGIPANE CROSTATA

Steps:

• Make the dough: Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a stand mixer or in a bowl with a sturdy whisk, beat together sugar, salt, eggs and butter. Fold in flour and knead the dough into a ball. Squash the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to 2 days before using. (Dough can also be frozen up to 2 months.) Roll out dough using a lightly floured rolling pin or press dough into a 10-inch French tart pan. Freeze or refrigerate tart shell while you make the filling. (It is not necessary to blind bake the tart shell.)
• Make the filling: Whisk together almonds, sugar, butter, egg yolks and whole egg until creamy, then whisk in rum and almond extract.
• Spread the frangipane batter evenly over the bottom of tart shell, and arrange pear slices over in a circular pattern. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake at 375 degrees, for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees. (If pastry is browning too quickly, loosely cover edges with foil.) Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden but not too dark and a toothpick pushed into the center of the tart comes out clean. If it doesn't, bake a few minutes longer.