Sunday, December 18, 2011

Gluten Free Pear and Caramel Tart, Plus A Giveaway.


   Ever since I figured out how to get a tart out of one of those springform tart pans without screwing the entire crust up, I've been fascinated with tart pans. To me it's like magic. Okay, call me easily amused but I love wielding a spatula and easing the crust off its' little metal base after I make the tin frame drop its' ruffled skirts and let its' full tartiness rule. Any chance I can get to exercise my tart unmolding skills I'll take. So, last night when our friends came over for a movie night, I decided since Terri would be joining us, that would be the night I'd attempt my first gluten free tart. It turns out that while he was in India, Mr. X had received a gift of Harry and David pears from a business associate. He brought them over to our house and who could resist a big box of Royal Riviera Pears all wrapped up in pretty green tissue paper? I had to bake a pear tart.

   The pear tart recipe is virtually the same as the Apple Caramel Tart I baked for Halloween. The caramel recipe was the same, the filling recipe was the same, just substituting pears for apples. The only thing different was the gluten free crust. Ever since my friend Terri was diagnosed with celiac disease earlier this year, I've been experimenting with more gluten free baking. I decided to try a mix of flours to take the place of wheat flour in the crust recipe. I mixed up a batch of this stuff earlier this week, and this tart seemed to be the perfect opportunity to try it out. Here's a gluten free flour mix. This mix makes about 3 to 4 cups of flour substitute.


Gluten Free Pear and Caramel Tart




Here's What You Need:

1 1/4  cups of gluten free flour mix

   Follow the Apple Caramel Crust recipe. The dough will be a bit softer than the regular flour dough, but other than that it's pretty much the same. The almond flavor in the flour mix adds a nice accent to the pear tart. After the tart cooled I sprinkled a bit of finely chopped walnuts over the top. When serving, drizzle a bit of warm caramel sauce over the tart and hit it with a dollop of whipped cream for added festivity


So, did it work? You bet it did.  


   The gluten free tart was a big hit. Terri and everybody else loved it. One hint, it was all gone in one sitting. Slowly but surely I'm learning more about gluten free baking and hell, baking in general. I'm going to be doing a lot more of this. It's fun experimenting with various flours and seeing how they interact with each other.

   As to the unmolding part of this tart? The part I love the best, voila! It worked beautifully except for the fact that I was looking around for the metal base of the tart pan all afternoon. How coud such a skilled baker have mislaid it? Of course I found out where it was once everyone started digging into dessert. It was still stuck to the bottom of the pan. My bad. My dessert however, good.

  Coming up next, some dishes courtesy of  Suvir Saran's new cookbook Masala Farm: Stories and Recipes from an Uncommon Life in the Country and a Giveaway from OXO on behalf of the fight against Pediatric Cancer. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

3 comments :

  1. This tart looks absolutely delicious! Pear and caramel, what a perfect combination!

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  2. This looks great. So glad to come across a gluten free crust that works. Will definitely be trying this.

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  3. Kathy The tart is so pretty. I am always at awe when someone makes anything GF & it's successful!!Wanted to drop by and wish you a Happy Holiday season my friend!

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