Warm Spiced Pear Tarts
Photography Claire Aldous.
The aroma of fragrant spiced pears and buttery pastry will waft around your kitchen. For a special treat, top with ice-cream and a dollop of purchased dulce de leche or salted caramel sauce.
Serves: 6
INGREDIENTS
2 sheets pre-rolled butter puff pastry
Filling
1 kilogram firm but ripe pears, I used Beurre Bosc
⅔ cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons cornflour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and cardamom
¼ teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg
¼ teaspoon sea salt
To serve
ice cream or softly whipped cream and icing sugar for dusting
METHOD
Grease a 6 hole, 150ml capacity muffin tin.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.
Roll each sheet of pastry out on a lightly floured board until a little thinner. Stamp out 6 x 12cm circles and line each tin, bringing the pastry up above the rim of each one to contain the pears. Chill until firm.
Peel, quarter and core the pears then cut into 1cm thick slices.
Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and add the pears, tossing well to coat every slice.
Spoon the pears into the pastry cases, stacking them above the rim as they will reduce down during cooking. Spoon over any spiced juices left in the bowl.
Bake on the lowest shelf in the oven for 40 minutes until the pastry is crisp and golden and the pears are bubbling and tender. The pastry needs to be well cooked or the tarts will be soggy. Run a small palette knife between the pastry and the tin to release any stuck-on bits from the sides. Let the tarts rest for at least 10 minutes before removing from the tins.
To serve: Dust with icing sugar and top with ice-cream or softly whipped cream. Serve immediately. Makes 6.
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126
We start by sharing what’s on the dish team’s radar, what we’re watching, listening to and reading. Harry Butterfield puts a twist on his Nonna’s agnolotti, Malissa Fedele reminds us of the importance of fibre, and Phoebe Holden fulfils a long-held dream, sitting down with Yotam Ottolenghi. Autumn is an abundant time, we make the most with pumpkin, kūmara, cabbage, cauliflower, feijoas, apples and pears. We’re dishing up dinners for two, including a Chicken Dumpling Lasagne, alongside easy weeknight meals. We honour our mums, revisit timeless classics, and add a little baking challenge. This issue, we encourage you to slow down, to enjoy writing your shopping list, and spending time in the kitchen. Because even when life feels relentless, there’s always space to share something delicious.