Monthly Archives: October 2011

This perfectly packaged treat by Mijune Pak pulls in the best of all provinces! Find her foodie blog, Follow Me Foodie.

From Food Network Canada –  Recipe to Riches

Preparation time:

Cooking time: 70 minutes

Yield: 8

Ingredients

Pastry

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup marzipan (4 oz/120 g)

1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut in cubes

3 tablespoons slivered almonds

1 unit egg yolk

6 tablespoons ice water

Vanilla Custard

1 1/2 cups 35% whipping cream

2 tablespoons maple syrup

unit Seeds from 1 vanilla bean

5 unit egg yolks

3/4 cup granulated sugar

Filling

3 unit ripe but firm Bartlett pears

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Brulée

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Directions

Pastry

Grease bottom of eight 1 cup (250 mL) wide mouth mason jars. In bowl and using fingertips, blend together flour and marzipan until fine consistency. Work in cold butter until mixture has coarse crumb consistency. Using fork, stir in almonds. Mix egg yolk and ice water; pour over flour mixture and toss with fork just until dough comes together. Gather into a ball. Flatten into a disc. Wrap in plastic. Chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375F (190C).

Divide pastry into eight equal portions; press one portion firmly into bottom of each prepared mason jar (not up sides). Pierce a few times with tines of fork. Place on baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 350F (180C).

Vanilla Custard

In saucepan, heat cream, maple syrup and vanilla bean seeds over medium-high heat until bubbles form around edge of pan and mixture is steaming; remove from heat. In bowl, whisk yolks with sugar until thickened and creamy. Gradually whisk in hot cream mixture. Return mixture to saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until custard thickens and coats back of a spoon, about 2 to 4 minutes. Strain through fine-meshed sieve into a bowl. Place piece of plastic wrap on surface of custard. Set aside.

Filling

Peel and core pears. Cut into 3/4 inch (2 cm) cubes. In nonstick frying pan, melt butter over medium heat; cook pears until slightly softened, stirring gently, about 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in sugar, salt and cardamom until sugar dissolves. In small bowl, whisk cornstarch into 2 tbsp (25 mL) water; stir into pear mixture and cook until thickened, about 30 to 60 seconds. Divide evenly among mason jars. Pour cooled Vanilla Custard over warm pears, dividing evenly.

Place mason jars in a large shallow baking dish. Add hot water to half way up side of jars. Bake in centre of oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until custard is set but slightly jiggly at centre. Carefully remove from water bath; cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until cold and custard is set, at least 2 hours.

Brulée

Preheat broiler. Sprinkle each pie with 1-1/2 tsp (7 mL) sugar. Carefully broil until sugar caramelizes. (Alternatively, use kitchen torch.) Serve immediately, or close jars and store in refrigerator. Best served at room temperature.

via Canadian Pie-In-A-Jar.

This one didn’t make it to the final two but the idea is so cute! I think the recipe is a bit complicated. I’d try adapting it to make it simpler and use less fancy ingrediants, like the marzipan and almonds (sometimes almonds give me an allergic reaction, not always though).

A younger Keanu Reeves. He smiles up nice.