Tuesday, December 1, 2009

TWD-Rosy Poached Pear and Pistachio Tart

Tarts are one of my favorite desserts. I love a fresh fruit tart, especially in the Summer months. Pastry cream is also a favorite of mine so this dessert seemed to be right up my alley, although I have never made a tart with "Fall" fruit so this was new for me.

This recipe was definitely labor intensive, but in the end I felt it was well worth the work. When I went to start the pastry cream, I realized I had forgotten to get pistachios at the grocery store and I wasn't about to head back with three little ones in tow, so I made due with the almonds I already had in the freezer and I think it worked out just fine. Nuts were a nice addition to the pastry cream. I love all things flavored almond, so this pastry cream hit a home run.

For religious reasons, I chose not to use wine as my poaching liquid. After talking with my husband and checking the P&Q on the TWD site, I decided that a combination of cranberry juice and apple juice would make a good alternative to red wine. The pears were beautiful in color and had a nice hint of citrus to them when they were done poaching.

Once assembled, this dessert is quite the show stopper. My guess is it is more so when pistachios are used, as the pastry cream is a different color. The sweet, cookie-like crust, combined with the nut-filled pastry cream, topped with rosy poached pears, made for a lovely combination, and the reduced syrup from the poaching liquid gave it the perfect finishing touch. I will definitely make this recipe again, but would want to make it for a crowd to ooh and ahh over! For the full recipe, head on over to I'll Eat You. As for pictures, I hope to get some posted tomorrow. We just returned from a wonderful Thanksgiving at Disney World with my parents, sisters, their husbands and kids and life has been a bit hectic here. Until next week!

Happy Baking!

2 comments:

wildthayn said...

Sounds yummy Whit!! I can't wait to see the pictures!

April said...

sounds like a delicious combo.