Pear and Walnut Dessert Tart Baked with Brandy
The star of this scrumptious tart is the succulent pear, with a walnut-laced crust providing a delightful contrast. Here's a recipe to create your own version of this tantalizing treat.
Essential Ingredients:
To bring the flavors to life, you'll need:- Pear Brandy: A pear eau de vie like Clear Creek Distillery's pear brandy, adds a natural, fruity flavor to macerate those delectable pears.- Nuts: Walnuts are used both in the crust and the filling, adding a nutty crunch to every bite.
Preparation Steps:
- Prepare the dough for the crust, which can be made up to 2 days beforehand, kept refrigerated, and proceed from step 4 when ready.
- Macerate the pears with pear brandy, sugar, and lemon juice, allowing them to release their juicy goodness for about 15 minutes.
- Blend the walnuts and sugar for the filling, followed by butter, eggs, flour, and salt. Keep this mix aside.
- Press the chilled dough into a 9-inch tart pan, bake on a baking sheet for 15 minutes, remove the foil and beans, and continue baking until the sides are golden. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
- Spread the walnut filling evenly in the cooled crust, and arrange the macerated pear slices over it, leaving a 1/4 inch edge uncovered.
- Bake until the tart is golden and a cake tester comes out clean, around 40 to 45 minutes.
- Strain and simmer the reserved pear juices until reduced by half, and brush this syrup over the warm tart. Let the tart cool on a rack.
- Slice and serve this sumptuous Brandied Pear-Walnut Tart with your choice of ice cream, whipped cream, or crème fraîche to complete the indulgent experience.
Fun Fact:
While I couldn't find a specific Brandied Pear-Walnut Tart recipe, the flavors in this dish can be found in many realm of culinary delights, from tarts to pies to jams, ensuring your taste buds will always have a treat to savor!
During the preparation of the Brandied Pear-Walnut Tart, overlapping slices of pear are placed on top of a crust made from walnuts, creating a visually pleasing and delicious contrast. After following the instructions for the filling, involving blending walnuts, sugar, and other ingredients, pour the mixture into the crust and arrange the macerated pear slices on top. To spread the flavors of pear brandy further, the reserved pear juice is reduced and brushed over the warm tart as a syrup.
