cranberry pear crumble tart
this cranberry pear crumble tart is the easiest holiday dessert. it is made from an easy press in crust that doubles as the topping and is filled with sweet pears and tart cranberries.
Equipment
- 9" (23 cm) tart pan with removable bottom
- zester
Ingredients
spiced crust and crumble topping
- 1 c (226g) unsalted butter, browned (reduced down to ¾ c (185g)
- 1 ¾ c (210g) all purpose flour
- 1 c (96-112g) almond flour
- ¾ c (150g) light brown or maple sugar
- ½ c (50g) rolled oats
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp (5ml) vanilla extract
- ½ tsp (5ml) almond extract
spiced pear and cranberry filling
- 2 (454g) large ripe, but firm pears, thinly sliced
- 2 c (200g) fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped
- ½ -⅔ c (100 - 134g) granulated or maple sugar see recipe notes
- 3 tbsp (15-45ml) lemon or orange juice or water
- zest of one lemon or orange use the same citrus as the liquid
- 2 tsp all purpose flour
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
Instructions
spiced crust and crumble topping
- Preheat the oven to 400 F (204 C).
- Make brown butter about an hour before you plan to make the cookies. It will need 15 minutes to make and another 15-30 to cool enough to use in the recipe.To make the brown butter, melt butter in a clear heavy bottom sauce pan. Once the butter starts to foam, whisk continuously until brown bits start to form. Remove from heat, pour into clean bowl and cool 30 minutes to room temperature, but still liquid.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together until well combined.
- Stir in the cool, but still liquid brown butter and extracts to the dry ingredients until the crumbs are moistened. Start with ¾ c cooled brown butter. If there is excess butter and it's needed to create the moistened crumble texture, add more as needed.
- Divide the crumbles into ⅔, ⅓. Press ⅔ of the crumble into the tart pan. Start pressing the dough into the sides, working back to the bottom. Once the dough is pressed in, prick the crust with a fork several times along the bottom. Freeze for 10-15 minutes. Reserve the ⅓ for topping the tart. Set in the fridge to chill until needed.
- Place the tart pan on on a baking/cookie sheet. Bake at 400 F (204 C) for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven to cool slightly before filling. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 F (177 C).
assembling the tart
- In a large bowl, toss the thinly sliced pears, chopped cranberries, sugar, liquid/juice, flour, zest and spices together until well combined with all the fruit coated.
- Mound the filling into the par-baked crust. Top with the reserved ⅓ crumble topping.
- Bake the tart on a baking/cookie sheet for 45-55 minutes or until the fruit has softened and the tart is very fragrant.
- Cool completely before enjoying.
Notes
Browning the butter is optional, but brings another flavor note to the tart. If you prefer to skip this step, melt ¾ c, 12 tablespoon (185g) of unsalted butter.
The pears are used to help balance the tartness of the cranberries. Taste the pears before using in the recipe. If the pears aren't very sweet, opt to use a bit more sugar to balance out the flavors.
Lemon, orange juice or water: The lemon juice will bring more tartness, the orange juice more sweetness and the water, just the needed moisture. Choose the one you prefer.
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