FOR THE PASTRY
8 oz Plain flour 5 oz Unsalted butter
pn Sea salt 1 Egg yolk, size 1
1 tb Caster sugar 3 tb Very cold water
-FOR THE FILLING-
4 lg Ripe pears 4 1/2 oz Caster sugar
200 g Lebkuchen biscuits 2 Eggs, size 1
2 oz Ground hazlenuts 2 tb Ginger wine
5 oz Unsalted butter Cr?me fra?che (optional)
You will need a 10in tart tin, preferably 1 1/2in deep, with a
removable base; some baking parchment; dried baking beans.
Preheat the oevn to gas mark 5, 375?F, 190?C.
Put the flour, salt, sugar in the processor and whiz for a few
seconds. Chop the butter roughly with a knife, add to the flour, and
process for about 15 seconds until you have a rough, crumb-like
mixture. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk and water together and
then add to the flour and butter. Whiz for about 30 seconds or until
the pastry dough has left the sides of the bowl and is clinging in a
solid mass around the central spindle. Take out the pastry and
lightly mould with your hands into a flattish round, so that later it
will roll out more easily to the shape of the tart tin. Wrap it in
clingfilm and put in the fridge to rest for about 30 minutes or
overnight.
Take a scrap of butter and thoroughly grease the tart tin, paying
special attention to the area where the base and sides meet. Roll
out your pastry to the thickness of a chamois leather (you will have
some surplus). Line the tart tin, making sure you do not strtch the
pastry, by starting in the middle of the tin and draping the pastry
gently and easily outwards towards the corners and then up the sides.
Prick the base all over with a fork and put the tin back into the
fridge for another 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut a piece of baking parchment to fit inside the pastry
crust. Remove the pastry lined tin from the fridge, line with the
baking parchment and sprinkle some beans over the bottom. Place in
the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes until the pastry has ‘set’
and is light golden. Remove from the oven, take out the parchment and
beans, and return pastry crust to the oven for a further 3 minutes to
colour the bottom. Then remove again and leave to cool, still in the
tin.
Put the biscuits in a food processor and whiz until coarse crumbs.
Empty and combine the crumbs and ground hazelnuts in a bowl. Now put
the butter and sugar in the food processor and cream together until
smooth and fluffy. Beat the eggs in a small bowl until well mixed.
To prevent the ‘frangipane’ curdling, first add about a third of the
nut and crumb mixture to the creamed butter in the food processor and
whiz for a few seconds until incorporated. Carry on with the nut and
crumbs, then egg, until everything is mixed in but do not over
process. Finally, add the ginger wine or other liqueur.
Peel the pears and cut them in half lengthways. Core, but leave the
stalks on. Then make lengthways cuts down the pears, as if to fan,
leaving the base intact. Now spoon in the frangipane mixture to
cover the pastry case and place the pears on top with the stalks
pointing towards the middle. Bake for 25 minutes at gas mark 3,
325?F, 170?C until golden brown and the mixture only just set – it’s
better if the mixture is still a little soft in the centre as it add
a creamy texture to the finished tart. This is better eaten just warm
rather than piping hot. Serve either plain or with a good dollop of
cr?me fra?che.
Yields
6 servings