Fall Apple/Pear Tart For Fiesta Friday #94
I have been a tart making mad woman lately. I feel like I always am elbow deep in dough and honestly, I love it. Making pies and tarts is one of my favorite things to bake. There is something about the flaky buttery pastry crust with some sort of filling whether it be sweet or savory that just feels like home and comfort. I had to make some tarts for an office potluck (sort of early holiday) party and made extra so I could bring to the party. I am bringing an apple and pear tart decorated with fall leaves. I used a different method than making an apple pie for this tart, I wanted it to have a crisp crust and it had to be able to be eaten standing so no juicy piece of apple pie for this event. I blind baked a rectangular tart shell and oven roasted some apples and nicely ripened pears in poire william and brown sugar letting them get nicely soft. The fall leaves were also baked ahead and placed on the tart half way through the baking process. It really turned out nicely.
Thank you to Angie@Fiesta Friday for hosting and our co hosts this week are Judi @ cookingwithauntjuju and Stef @ The Kiwi Fruit. Thanks for hosting and I hope you all enjoy the tart.
Pie Dough
Julia Child makes a 9 inch double crust pie or 2 9 inch tarts
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cake flour
6 oz good unsalted butter (I use Irish butter – Kerry Gold very cold
4 tbs shortening cold
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup ice cold water
Place flours and salt in mixing bowl, whisk to combine. Cut in the butter and shortening with pastry cutter so that it resembles course crumbs. Pour in the water and mix just to combine with a fork. Gather the dough and divide in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and press into a disk shape. Refrigerate at least an hour or overnight.
blind bake tart shell
Blind Bake
Pre heat oven to 400 degree’s.
Roll dough, I like it pretty thin. Cut off a little bit of each disk so you can make the leaves and set aside. Place in the tart pan, prick bottom with fork and place in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Line baking sheet with parchment, place another piece of parchment on the frozen tart and weigh it down with pie weights or beans whatever you use. Bake for 20 minutes watching that it doesn’t brown to deeply. Remove from oven, let cool for about ten minutes and remove the pie weights. Let the tart shell cool on a rack.
With the reserved dough use cookie cutters in the shape of leaves and press out an assortment of leaves at least 1 dozen or more. Place on parchment lined baking sheet, brush with egg wash and place in freezer.
Reduce oven to 375 and bake the leaves for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned. let cool on rack.
Apples and Pears
2 apples peeled cut in half and cored
2 pears peeled cut in half and cored
1/3 cup Poire William or pear nectar, apple cider or combination of all or some
1/3 cup brown sugar
pinch each of cinnamon and nutmeg
Butter a baking dish and place your pears and apples cut side down, pour in the liquid and sprinkle on the brown sugar. Dot with some butter. Bake for about 40 minutes, the pears and apples should be soft but not mushy.
Drain off the liquid and reserve for later and let the fruit cool to room temperature.
Baking the tart
Place the pears and apples in the tart shell, whisk 1 1/2 tbs of corn starch, or flour, cinnamon and nutmeg with the reserved liquid. Pour over the fruit and place in the 375 degree oven. Bake for 20 minutes and remove from the oven and carefully place the leaves on top of the tart, return to the oven for another 20 minutes or until golden brown.
To finish the tart I heated some apricot preserves and brushed the leaves so they were lovely and shiny.
apuginthekitchen 