Late TWD: Rosy Poached Pear and Pistachio Tart Plus Turkey Sliders and Christmas Cookie Recipe: Pecan Sandies

Bosc pears poached in a berry wine, hazelnut custard, caramelized hazelnuts, and a wine syrup all look a little daunting when combined into one recipe. Broken down into steps over 2 days makes Dorie's pretty pear tart approachable. I did "start" on Tuesday so posting is late 'but' I am giving myself a pat on the back for still completing the recipe. The tart is just beautiful . . . and I made the full size.Tuesday with Dorie's own Lauren of I’ll Eat You chose the Rosy Poached Pear and Pistachio Tart, pages 370 and 371 of "Baking From My Home to Yours" by Dorie Greenspan.
I learned a few new flavors and techniques in this one, all-inclusive recipe. First, I made a custard with chopped hazelnuts simmering in milk then processed to a custard stage. Next, a wine syrup was created for the pears, then reduced into a syrup, to be served with slices of the pear tart. The cooking world is never ending with new techniques, flavors and ideas. A love for learning in the kitchen can keep anyone occupied for a lifetime. A person can look at a list of ingredients in a recipe and think through the recipe, getting a mental flavor of the end product. I do this quite often, thinking a recipe will not be anything special but worth the learning experience. I have been fooled several times and these recipes become family favorites.

Dorie's wine poached pears may not be my family's must-have dessert but the tart is worthy of any dinner party. Thank you Karin for choosing such an intriguing recipe, widening my cooking world.

Marionberry wine from a small winery in Oregon, called Honeywood, was used for the pear poaching. The wine was so delicious (I had to take a sip to make sure the wine would be compatible with the recipe) that I went to Fred Meyers and ordered 2 more bottles to have for company as a dessert wine. Stores do not carry this wine for long because the winery makes small quantities.
I was worried about having orange and lemon zest flavors with a berry wine but the result was wonderful.

Making a caramel sauce for the hazelnuts may have been the easiest part of this recipe, except for trying to peel hot caramelized hazelnuts off my wooden spoon while trying to flatten the nuts on a silipat.
Definitely more pistachios on the silipat then needed but I am sure with all the Christmas baking, the leftovers will find a new home.
The tart was fun to assemble and looks beautiful. To get the recipe, go to Karin's site or buy Dorie Greenspan's wonderful cookbook.

Leftover turkey and homemade cranberry sauce is still abundant in my refrigerator. To ease the excess load, a quick recipe called Pulled Turkey Cranberry Sliders are in order. I use simple dinner rolls, toasted under the broiler to get a delicious crispy exterior.

Pulled Turkey Cranberry BBQ Sliders

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola oil

1/2 cup yellow onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon, jalapeño pepper, finely chopped, seeds removed

1 clove garlic, minced

1-1/2 cup leftover Cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving or (1) can whole berry cranberry sauce

1/2 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

Roast turkey, shredded

Dinner rolls, halved lengthwise

Directions:

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add onions and jalapeño and cook over medium heat until the onions have softened. Add garlic and continue to cook for approximately one minute. Add cranberry sauce, ketchup and mustard and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning. Remove from heat.

Toss the turkey with enough sauce to coat. Pile the turkey onto the dinner rolls to form little sandwich sliders. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Christmas baking has begun and I started with Pecan Sandies. The cookies are a favorite in my family (unfortunately I love them too). My Golden Retriever, Rocky, helps me maintain self-control. Each cookie nibbled is divided equally between us.

Pecan Sandies

(adapted from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups chopped pecans
1/2 cup white sugar for decoration

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

In a large bowl, cream together the margarine, vegetable oil, 1 cup white sugar and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in the pecans. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.

Roll dough into 1 inch balls and roll each ball in remaining white sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are golden. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.
What a great week so far!