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WARM PEAR TART WITH CARAMEL SAUCE AND GINGER CRUMBLE
10 minutes prep. 
60 minutes cooking
Serves 6 |
Ingredients
- 100 g marzipan, crumbled
- 1 egg white
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon plain flour
- 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed if frozen
- 2 beurre bosc pears, peeled, cored and very thinly sliced
- 50 g unsalted butter, melted
- 255 g caster sugar
- 2 teaspoons Pernod
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1½ tablespoons lemon juice
- 6 paradise pears, peeled
- 1 cup (250 ml) double cream, lightly whipped
- 100 g butter
- 130 g plain flour
- 50 g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 200 g caster sugar
- 100 g butter
- 200 ml cream
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- To make the caramel sauce, combine the caster sugar with 2½ tablespoons water in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil over low–medium heat, then increase the heat to medium–high and cook, shaking the pan now and then, for 3–4 minutes or until the sugar turns golden. Working quickly, remove the pan from the heat and, taking care as the mixture will spit, whisk in the butter until combined, then slowly pour in the cream and leave to cool to room temperature.
- For the ginger crumble, place all the ingredients in a bowl and rub together with your fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Scatter evenly onto a baking tray and bake for 5–6 minutes until golden brown, shaking the tray every now and again to ensure the crumble cooks evenly. Remove from the oven and set aside, leaving the oven set to 200°C.
- Place the marzipan, egg white, vanilla extract and flour in a bowl and, using electric beaters, beat until smooth.
- On a clean, lightly floured benchtop, roll the puff pastry sheet out to a 5 mm thickness and cut into a rectangle 16 cm × 22 cm. Place onto a baking tray lined with non- stick baking paper, and spread the marzipan mixture evenly over the pastry, leaving a 5 mm gap around the edge. Arrange the pear slices on the marzipan, overlapping them slightly, then brush over the melted butter and sprinkle over 55 g of the sugar. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large heavy-based saucepan, bring the remaining caster sugar, the Pernod, fennel seeds, lemon juice and 400 ml water to a boil. Place the whole pears in the syrup, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the pears are tender.
- Remove the tart from the oven and spoon over half the caramel sauce. Place a sheet of non-stick baking paper on top of the tart and then place a baking tray face-down on top of that. Holding the trays firmly at each end, carefully invert the trays so the pastry base is uppermost, remove the top tray and layer of paper and return the tart to the oven for a further 10–15 minutes; this ensures the base is nice and crisp.
- Remove the tart from the oven and carefully invert onto a serving tray. Drizzle over the remaining caramel sauce and arrange the whole poached pears on top. Sprinkle the crumble mix over, then serve with the whipped cream alongside.
