Pear Dessert

Facing an over abundance of pears I discovered hiding in the crisper drawer I was on a mission to make something pear related for dessert a few weeks back when we went to visit the folk's for dinner.

I finally settled on this recipe: Old Fashioned Pear Dessert I think it's because it has "old fashioned" in the name, and I assume that any recipe that can stand the test of time must be a winner....

Ingredients

• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar & 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup cold butter, cubed
• 3 egg yolks
• 4-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

First you mix up the crust ingredients above, using 3 tbsp of sugar. Then, put 1 cup of mixture aside adding an additional 2 tbsp sugar which will be used for the topping, pressing remaining mixture into a pan. This honestly was the most difficult part. They crust was somewhat dry to work with and crumbly to boot, so it made things a little difficult when trying to get it to stick to the sides.

But mission accomplished and now it was ready for the oven to bake for about 10-12 min at 375˚.

While it was baking I worked on the filling:

• FILLING:
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons plus 1-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 cups chopped peeled ripe pears

Chopping pears & combining sugar, 2 tbsp cornstarch, salt and cinnamon in a saucepan with water and lemon juice stirring til smooth. Bring to a boil and cook for about 1 min until sauce is thickened, remove from heat and add butter and vanilla.

Toss pears with remaining corn starch, spoon into baked crust and pour the topping over the pears. Then sprinkle with the reserved topping.

Bake for 35-40 min or until the top i slightly browned and filling is bubbling.

Now to be honest, I was running late to dinner that night, and took this dessert to the house warm. After dinner, I was so eager to try it I forgot to get some "nice" shots of what it looked like...I only remembered after my first bite, and the desert was half gone. Needless to say it was delicious!! Next time I think I might go a little lighter on the bottom crust...I think it was a bit thick, but other then that, this old fashioned recipe lived up to it's name!