Pear–Ginger Free-Form Tart (Reduced Sugar)
By America's Test KitchenPublished on April 18, 2020
Time
3 hours, plus 25 minutes cooling
Yield
Serves 6
Sugar
22 grams (down from 34)
Ingredients
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7½ ounces/213 grams), plus additional for work surface½ plus ⅛ teaspoon table salt, divided10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), cold, cut into ½-inch cubes3–6 tablespoons ice water 2 pounds (907 grams) ripe but firm Bosc or Bartlett pear, peeled, halved, cored, and sliced ½-inch thick⅓ cup (1¾ ounces/50 grams) Sucanat 1½ tablespoons lemon juice 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger ¼ teaspoon ground ginger 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
Before You Begin
You can learn more about Sucanat in this article.
Instructions
- Process flour and ½ teaspoon salt in food processor until combined, about 5 seconds. Scatter butter over top and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand and butter pieces are about size of small peas, about 10 pulses. Continue to pulse, adding ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough begins to form small curds that hold together when pinched with fingers, about 10 pulses.
- Transfer mixture to lightly floured counter and gather into rectangular-shaped pile. Starting at farthest end, use heel of hand to smear small amount of dough against counter. Continue to smear dough until all crumbs have been worked. Gather smeared crumbs together in another rectangular-shaped pile and repeat process.
- Form dough into 6-inch disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Let chilled dough sit on counter to soften slightly, about 10 minutes, before rolling. (Wrapped dough can be frozen for up to 1 month. If frozen, let dough thaw completely on counter before rolling.)
- Roll dough into 12-inch circle between 2 large sheets of parchment paper (if dough sticks to parchment, dust lightly with flour). Slide dough, still between parchment, onto baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Microwave pears in covered bowl, stirring occasionally, until pears are translucent and slightly pliable, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer to colander and let pears drain for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Gently combine cooled pears, Sucanat, lemon juice, grated ginger, ground ginger, and remaining ⅛ teaspoon salt in bowl. Remove top sheet parchment from dough. Mound pear mixture in center of dough, leaving 3-inch border around edge. Fold outer 3 inches of dough over filling, pleating dough every 2 to 3 inches as needed. Gently pinch pleated dough to secure, but do not press dough into fruit. Brush tart dough with beaten egg white.
- Bake tart until golden brown and pears are tender, about 1 hour, rotating sheet halfway through baking.
- Let tart cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Using parchment, slide tart onto wire rack, then discard parchment. Let tart cool until juices have thickened, about 25 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Time
3 hours, plus 25 minutes coolingYield
Serves 6Sugar
22 grams (down from 34)Ingredients
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7½ ounces/213 grams), plus additional for work surface
½ plus ⅛ teaspoon table salt, divided
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), cold, cut into ½-inch cubes
3–6 tablespoons ice water
2 pounds (907 grams) ripe but firm Bosc or Bartlett pear, peeled, halved, cored, and sliced ½-inch thick
⅓ cup (1¾ ounces/50 grams) Sucanat
1½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
Ingredients
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7½ ounces/213 grams), plus additional for work surface
½ plus ⅛ teaspoon table salt, divided
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), cold, cut into ½-inch cubes
3–6 tablespoons ice water
2 pounds (907 grams) ripe but firm Bosc or Bartlett pear, peeled, halved, cored, and sliced ½-inch thick
⅓ cup (1¾ ounces/50 grams) Sucanat
1½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
Ingredients
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7½ ounces/213 grams), plus additional for work surface
½ plus ⅛ teaspoon table salt, divided
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), cold, cut into ½-inch cubes
3–6 tablespoons ice water
2 pounds (907 grams) ripe but firm Bosc or Bartlett pear, peeled, halved, cored, and sliced ½-inch thick
⅓ cup (1¾ ounces/50 grams) Sucanat
1½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
Why This Recipe Works
Instead of highlighting a summer fruit, we turned our attention to the sweet flavor of one of our favorite fall fruits: pears. Since they're hardier than summer stone fruits, pears require a longer cooking time, so simply pouring raw fruit into dough and baking it wasn't an option: The crust was scorched by the time the pears were tender. For perfectly cooked pears and crust, we precooked the pears (and drained away any excess liquid) before filling the raw dough. This allowed the fruit and the crust to finish cooking at the same time, resulting in tender pears and a golden-brown crust. Without any added flavorings our tart seemed a little dull, and we decided that ginger would be just the thing we needed to spice up our dessert. A combination of ground and fresh ginger gave our tart a balanced backbone, while just a dash of lemon juice kept the ginger from overwhelming the delicate flavor of the pears.
Before You Begin
You can learn more about Sucanat in this article.
Instructions
- Process flour and ½ teaspoon salt in food processor until combined, about 5 seconds. Scatter butter over top and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand and butter pieces are about size of small peas, about 10 pulses. Continue to pulse, adding ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough begins to form small curds that hold together when pinched with fingers, about 10 pulses.
- Transfer mixture to lightly floured counter and gather into rectangular-shaped pile. Starting at farthest end, use heel of hand to smear small amount of dough against counter. Continue to smear dough until all crumbs have been worked. Gather smeared crumbs together in another rectangular-shaped pile and repeat process.
- Form dough into 6-inch disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Let chilled dough sit on counter to soften slightly, about 10 minutes, before rolling. (Wrapped dough can be frozen for up to 1 month. If frozen, let dough thaw completely on counter before rolling.)
- Roll dough into 12-inch circle between 2 large sheets of parchment paper (if dough sticks to parchment, dust lightly with flour). Slide dough, still between parchment, onto baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Microwave pears in covered bowl, stirring occasionally, until pears are translucent and slightly pliable, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer to colander and let pears drain for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Gently combine cooled pears, Sucanat, lemon juice, grated ginger, ground ginger, and remaining ⅛ teaspoon salt in bowl. Remove top sheet parchment from dough. Mound pear mixture in center of dough, leaving 3-inch border around edge. Fold outer 3 inches of dough over filling, pleating dough every 2 to 3 inches as needed. Gently pinch pleated dough to secure, but do not press dough into fruit. Brush tart dough with beaten egg white.
- Bake tart until golden brown and pears are tender, about 1 hour, rotating sheet halfway through baking.
- Let tart cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Using parchment, slide tart onto wire rack, then discard parchment. Let tart cool until juices have thickened, about 25 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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