When brainstorming recipes for November's #DessertChallenge sponsored by Sheryl over at www.ladybehindthecurtain, I first thought of poached pears swimming in a shimmery maple cognac sauce or tucking the sweet slices away into a buttery puff pastry pocket topped with butter pecan ice cream and a maple cognac syrup.
As yummy as all of that sounded, I decided instead to give my new tart pan a run with a pear and walnut torte. I love the concept of walnuts in the crust. They lend a delicious dimension to the homemade pastry. Both the crust and filling incorporate confectioners sugar rather than granulated.
Inside, the filling features a decadent blend of heavy cream, eggs, rum, more walnuts, pears, and a unique addition of coriander. I use this spice in so many dishes from cakes to Mexican dinners, to rice and vegetable sides. But this was the first time I crushed my own rather than just measuring the processed seeds from the store. Wow! What a difference. The potent scent surpasses the ground and produces a more intense lemon citrus and spice aroma. And it's fantastic with the pears and rum.
This torte migrates away from the cinnamon, clove seasonal spices, which are always quite tasty, and really shows you a super way to implement a less prominent spice into a dessert that will cause people to say, hmmm...what is that amazing flavor?
And of course, a rum laced torte deserves a Cognac infused whipped topping, right? This creamy rich dessert would be a tantalizing addition for all of your friends and family at Thanksgiving!
Much like the scrumptious seasonal fare, natural fall backdrops like this one are only around for a brief time so we have to enjoy them for as long as possible :)
Ingredients For Torte Pastry Crust
2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened just enough to cream
2/3 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
1 egg
1 2/3 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1.2 ounces of walnuts, ground
Ingredients For Filling
About 1 1/4 cups of walnut pieces, toasted and pureed (you need 1 cup of puree)
1 tablespoon crushed coriander seeds
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of heavy cream
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 cup of pear, chopped small (you can use Bosc, Anjou, or your favorite. I chose red for the fall color)
Ingredients For Whipped Cream
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoons Cognac
Directions For Crust
Cream the butter in a medium bowl with a hand mixer. Incorporate the sugar and then the egg. In a separate bowl combine the flour and salt. Add to butter mixture. Toss nuts in and stir together. Shape dough into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll chilled dough on a floured surface into a 10 inch circle so that it fits a 9 inch removable-bottom tart pan. Gently press it into the bottom of the pan and secure it to the sides well. Use the edges of the tart pan to slice off the excess dough so you have a pretty pastry shell. Bake 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. Turn temperature down to 300 degrees.
Directions For Filling
Toast nuts for about 8 to 10 minutes, stirring them midway through. Allow to cool. Place nuts in a food processor or blender and puree. You need 1 cup.
While nuts are cooking, crush your coriander seeds.
Turn oven back up to 350 degrees. When nuts are cooled, combine them and the seeds together in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients, except for pears. Blend well with a mixer. Stir in pears. Pour into your torte shell. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the torte is puffed in the center and slightly browned on top. Cool to room temperature and serve with whipped cream. Garnish with pear slices and walnuts (optional).
Directions For Whipped Cream
Pour heavy cream into a mixing bowl. Blend until it starts to thicken. Add syrup and Cognac. Continue mixing into a fluffy whipped cream. Chill until ready to use.
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