Pear Crostini With Blue Cheese Tyler Florence Recipes

BRANDIED BLUE CHEESE WITH PEAR CROSTINI

Steps:

• Mash cheese and butter together.
• Add brandy and walnuts.
• Toast baguette slices (one side only).
• Turn and place 1 slice of pear on untoasted side.
• Top with 1 teaspoons of cheese mixture.
• Broil about 2 minutes or until bubbly.

ROASTED PEARS WITH BLUE CHEESE AND WALNUTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Arrange the pears, cut sides up, on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Strip the leaves from the thyme branches and sprinkle over the pears. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake 20 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and spoon a generous teaspoon of crumbled cheese in the center of each pear half, return the pears to the oven and roast until they are tender and the cheese is soft, about 10 more minutes.
• Meanwhile, put the walnuts on another baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Chop. When the pears are cooked, transfer them to a serving plate and sprinkle the toasted walnuts over the top. Serve hot.

PEAR CROSTATA WITH HONEY, BLUE CHEESE, AND ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Arrange the pears, cut sides up, on a baking sheet and dot with butter. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until the pears are just tender. Let cool.
• Increase the oven heat to 450 degrees F.
• Sprinkle the counter and a rolling pin lightly with flour. Roll the dough out to a 14-inch round, about 1/4-inch thick. It doesn't have to be perfect. Transfer the dough to the back of a lightly floured baking sheet. Slice the pears and arrange them on the dough round by overlapping the slices in a spiral fashion, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Drizzle with the honey, scatter blue cheese over the top, and sprinkle with the almonds.
• Brush the border with the egg wash. Bring the edge of crust over onto the filling, leaving the fruit exposed in center. Gently fold and pinch the dough to seal any cracks. Brush the crust with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with the sugar. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the fruit is tender. Slide a knife under the crostata to loosen it from the pan. Then cut into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.
• Combine the flour, sugar, salt, and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and mix with a pastry blender or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the egg yolk and ice water and work that in with your hands. (Or do the whole thing in a food processor, pulsing a couple of times to combine the dry ingredients, then pulsing in the butter, and then the egg.) Check the consistency of the dough by squeezing a small amount together between thumb and forefingers: You want there to be just enough moisture to bind the dough so that it holds together without being too wet or sticky. If it's still crumbly, add a little more ice water, 1 teaspoon at a time. When you get it to the right consistency, shape the dough into a disk and wrap it in plastic. Put it in the refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes.

BLUE CHEESE AND GRILLED PEAR CROSTINI

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate. Slice pears into half-moons.
• Cook pears on the preheated grill until nicely browned, about 5 minutes per side. Set aside.
• Cut blue cheese slices into 8 equal pieces.
• Spread cream cheese over bread slices. Top with grilled pear slices and blue cheese. Sprinkle with walnuts, mint, and pepper. Drizzle with honey.

BLUE CHEESE & PEAR CROSTINI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350. Place bacon strips on foil lined baking sheet and sprinkle rosemary on top. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, until almost done, but not too crisp. Remove from oven and set aside.
• Preheat small skillet to medium heat and melt olive oil and butter together. Place shallot slices in skillet and stir well to coat evenly. Add brown sugar and melt together, continually stirring. Reduce heat to medium low and slowly cook for about 10 - 15 minutes until shallots are soft and caramelized in color. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Preheat a grill pan to medium heat. Place pears on pan and quickly grill for about 2 - 3 minutes until char lines are visible. Remove from heat.
• Preheat oven to broil. Line second baking sheet with bread slices. Top with large chunks of the blue cheese. Crumbles don't hold together well, so I do recommend a wedge of cheese that you pinch and crumble yourself. Top with bacon slices, caramelized onions and pears. Toast in oven until cheese melts, approximately 3 - 5 minutes.
• This is great when serve with warm toasted nuts and red wine.