Tag: pear

After the mashed-up Gerber variety, pears tend not to make a return appearance in people’s lives until they’re old enough to move past the primary colors of apples, bananas and blueberries, and appreciate the Edwardian low tones and subtle flavor of the pear. Not that Penelope means to be one of those foodie writer types whose description of the perfect Pear Pie with Red Current Glaze might get her nominated for a National Book Award. It’s just that when she made this recipe it just happened to strike a chord with an unusually sophisticated man who Penelope really wanted to impress. And the pie did work. After dessert, as they walked on the beach, which was much too cold for Penelope despite all her L.L. Bean precautions because it was after all, February, his eyes were definitely starting to glaze over. And not just from all the red currants. But when the conversation got around to where Penelope had gone to high school, even the Cole Porter of pies couldn’t erase the unfortunate image of the fifth stop from Manhattan after you changed at Jamaica on the Long Island Railroad. Penelope’s Ultimate Pie Crust for a single crust pie. Par-bake for 15 minutes at 400°. Turn the oven down to 375° to bake the rest of the pie

The Filling

1. 1 tbs fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2. 2 pounds pears
3. ¼ cup sugar
4. 2 tbs all-purpose flour
5. 2 tbs unsalted butter, melted
6. 4 tsp cassis
7. ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
8. pinch ground cloves
9. pinch salt
10. ⅓ cup currant jam

Pour the lemon juice into a large bowl

Peel, halve, and core the pears, removing the stem and fiber

Slice into the bowl

In a separate bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, butter, cassis, cinnamon, cloves, and salt

Add this mixure to the pears just before baking

Pour the filling into the bottom crust

Put the pie on a baking sheet and cover loosely with foil

Bake at 375° for at least 30 minutes or until the pears are tender

Cool the pie for at least 1 hour

When Penelope’s friend, Joan, told her about a wedding she’d recently been to where instead of having a wedding cake, they had wedding pies, a light went on for Penelope. Joan’s newlywed friends, Olivia and Andre, who were living in Olivia’s hometown of Madrid, had come back to the States to celebrate their marriage and near simultaneous arrival of their first born (they’re so cool) with a party in Andre’s hometown in Connecticut. It was basically a traditional celebration (meaning no parachutes being opened simultaneously or bungee cords flying as vows were exchanged over a canyon), but Olivia and Andre didn’t want a wedding cake. Instead, they asked each of their 100 or so guests to bring a pie, and they would provide everything else (meaning the Rioja and Cava). It was fantastic! There were miles of pies of all sorts – sweet and savory – as far as you could see. Of course Joan’s was the best, so here’s the recipe; and give it a try because besides the cornmeal pastry making a really nice change from butter or shortening, it just might get you a new life in Madrid or some other fabulous Mediterranean habitat.

Cornmeal Pastry

(for two 9-inch crusts)

1. 1½ cups all purpose flour
2. ½ cup yellow cornmeal
3. ½ cup sugar
4. 1 tsp salt
5. 8 tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
6. 2 large egg yolks
7. 3-4 tbs ice water

Mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar and salt together in a large bowl

Rub in the butter with your fingers until crumbly

Mix the egg yolks and ice water together in a small bowl

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stirring with a fork

Knead lightly in the bowl until the dough holds together; add water if it seems dry

Divide dough in half and press into 2 flat disks; wrap in plastic

Chill until firm, about 30 minutes

Note from the Zen Master: This dough is more crumbly than pate brisee; roll it out between two sheets of plastic wrap

The Filling

1. 1 bottle dry red wine
2. 1 cup sugar
3. 4 whole cloves
4. 2-3 cinnamon sticks
5. 10 ripe but firm Bartlett or Anjou pears, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch cubes
6. 1 tbs all-purpose flour
7. 1 large egg beaten with 2 tbs heavy cream, for glaze

Combine wine, sugar, cloves, and cinnamon sticks in large saucepan

Bring to a boil over medium heat, then lower heat and simmer until liquid is reduced by a third – 10-15 minutes

Add pears and poach at a bare simmer until tender, 15-30 minutes depending on ripeness

Keep pears submerged with a pot lid slightly smaller than the pan

Using a slotted spoon, put the pears in a large bowl

Reduce liquid by half over high heat

Pour over pears and let cool to room temperature; refrigerate, covered, overnight

Roll out the dough to ⅛ inch thick and use to line a 9-inch pie plate; chill until needed

Roll out remaining dough to a thickness of ⅛ inch and a diameter of 11 inches

Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet and cover; chill for 30 minutes

Heat oven to 375°

Sprinkle 1 tbs of flour over bottom of chilled pie crust

Remove spices from poaching liquid and discard

Remove pears with a slotted spoon and place in crust

Let top crust sit at room temperature for a few minutes before attempting to move it

Brush edges of bottom crust lightly with ice water

Carefully cover pears with top crust and crimp edges, sealing well

Cut a few small steam vents near center, and lightly brush top crust with egg glaze

Bake until top is golden brown and juices start to bubble out, 50-50 minutes

Let cool for 1 hour

You know how people (or at least gangsters) say, “I’ll make mincemeat out of you!” Well, it’s not all that easy to do, so you don’t really have to worry. In fact, because making mincemeat is so work-intensive, it comes ready-made, pre-seasoned and very tasty; which makes this recipe very easy. Pears (use Bosc, Comice, or Anjou) and mincemeat are a terrific team with real star quality. And in the tradition of Edward G. Robinson and Jimmy Cagny, go for ones that haven’t been bruised.

Pate Brise (for a double crust pie)

Roll out the bottom crust and place in a pie pan

Chill for 1 hour

Roll out the second ball of dough

Using a pastry cutter or knife, cut dough into ½ inch strips

The Filling

1. 5 large pears, peeled, halved, cored and chopped
2. 1¼ cups prepared mincemeat
3. ¼ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
4. 1 tbs all purpose flour
5. 1 tsp ground cinnamon
6. 1 tsp grated orange zest
7. ½ tsp ground allspice
8. ⅛ tsp ground cloves
9. 1 egg
10. 1 tbs milk

In a large bowl combine the pears, mincemeat, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, orange zest, allspice, and cloves; mix well

Spoon the mixture into the bottom pie crust

Use the pastry strips to make a lattice top - for more detailed instructions go to Lattice Crust

Preheat the oven to 400°

Bake for about 1 hour, until the crust is golden and the juices are bubbling

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool briefly

Serve warm or at room temperature

Use Penelope’s Ultimate Pie Crust Recipe, or your own favorite for a double crust pie crust

1. 3 large, firm, ripe pears, peeled, cored and sliced
2. 3 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced
3. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4. ½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
5. 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6. ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
7. ½ teaspoon salt
8. 3 tablespoons dry or sweet sherry
9. 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
10. 1 tablespoon heavy (double) cream
11. 1 tablespoon raw sugar or granulated sugar (Penelope recommends raw sugar)

The big techniques needed for this pie are the abilities to toss and pile. So not only is it delicious, it’s incredibly easy and therefore fun. For the novice (or young) pie maker, there’s nothing like tossing and piling to instill self-confidence. Besides, this pie has just enough special ingredients to make it both traditional and a special occasion crowd pleaser

Preheat the oven to 425°

Make the bottom piecrust

Roll it out and line the bottom of the pan

Roll out the top crust, too, and set it aside

Use the largest bowl you have because apples and pears like to spread out the way they did when they were growing up, combine all the fruit and then toss it with the lemon until all the apples and pears are coated

In a small bowl combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt; then add it to the fruit and toss everything again

Now add the sherry to the fruit mixture and toss once more

Filling done! Even unbaked, it should be starting to smell pretty wonderful

Pile all the fruit into the pastry-lined pan, then pinch bits of butter around the top

Covering the whole thing with the top crust might require a little maneuvering, but whatever weird shape the fruit ends up making will give your pie character

Trim the dough and flute the edges

Remember to make vents in the top crust so the steam can escape

Brush it with the cream and sprinkle generously with sugar

After 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 350°, then bake until the crust is browned and the fruit is tender, about 35 minutes longer

To test the fruit, pierce it with a knife through one of your handy vents

Makes one 9 inch, double crust pie.