Forelle Pear Crostata

Ingredients:

7 Forelle pears, peeled and cored

1 cinnamon stick

zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 star anise

3 cups sugar

3 cups water

½ cup sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 large eggs

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup roughly chopped pecans

2 tbsp all purpose flour

½ tsp salt

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 pie dough for 1 bottom crust

1 egg, beaten

2 tbsp brown sugar

Icing sugar

Boil together 3 cups water, 3 cups sugar the cinnamon stick, star anise and juice and zest of 1 lemon. Once boiled pour over prepared pears and allow to cool completely. Meanwhile in a food processor, pulse together the pecans to create a flour. With an electric mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer beat the sugar and butter together until fluffy. Add the eggs one a time and then the vanilla. Using a spatula wok in the pecans and flour to form a smooth paste.

Heat oven to 400F.

Roll out pie dough to fit in pie tin with 3 inches of overhang. Leave edges rough to create a rustic look. Drain pears and place 1 blueberry inside the cavity of each one. Fill with frangipane. Using the rest of the frangipane, fill the bottom of the prepared pie crust. Sink pears into frangipane and decorate with the rest of the blueberries. Fold edges of pie crust over and brush everything with beaten egg. Sprinkle pears with brown sugar and bake in bottom half of oven for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is well browned and frangipane has puffed up.

Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Glorias

Glorias are irresistible. Made from goat’s milk and pecans they are typically found in Linares in the province of Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Easily recognized by their bright red cellophane wrapper these typical candies are easy to make and nice as a gift. If you don’t have a candy thermometer you can use the method of dropping a small spoonful of your caramel into a glass of cold water. Once the caramel forms a ball that holds its shape once cooled in water you have reached the firm ball stage and that is what you are looking for.

Ingredients:

2 cups whole goat’s milk

1 ¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Pinch of salt

¼ tsp baking soda

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup finely chopped toasted pecans

Butter a medium baking dish or bowl and set aside.

In a medium (the deeper the better, this is going to boil up high) saucepan combine 1 cup of the goat milk, sugar, corn syrup, salt and baking soda. Cook over medium heat, stirring regularly until mixture comes to a boil. Cook over medium heat until candy thermometer reaches 242 Fahrenheit, or it has a light caramel color and all the foam has gone away. This should take you about 30 minutes.

Slowly add in the remaining milk and cook until the mixture reaches 246 Fahrenheit. Stop cooking and stir in the pecans and vanilla. Some sugar crystals is what you are looking for, so don’t worry. You want a texture with some soft pieces and other slightly dryer parts. Stir to cool and pour into butter dish/bowl.

Once cool enough to handle drop mounded tablespoonfuls of the mixture onto little squares (2”x3”) of parchment or cellophane (preferable red), roll and twist to wrap candy.

Makes 24, so you will have plenty to share.

Mezcal Impossible Choco Flan

This classic Mexican desert will be impossible for anyone to resist. It is also a fun recipe to create because of the fact that the cake and flan reverse during the cooking process giving the cake its other name of “Flan Imposible”. The homemade cajeta is unctuous and full of flavor and it makes all the difference in the final result.

For the Cajeta:

1L goat milk

1 cup sugar

1 tbsp light corn syrup

¼ tsp salt

1 vanilla bean split lengthwise

¼ tsp baking soda, dissolved in 1 tbsp cold water

Combine the milk, sugar, corn syrup and salt in a medium saucepot. You will want to use a heavy bottom pot so you have better control over your caramel. Bring to a boil over medium heat, remove from heat and add the baking soda and stir carefully because this will cause the mixture to bubble up. Once the bubbles slow down, return to heat and adjust the temperature regularly to keep the mixture simmering gently. Cook until thick and dark brown, about 1 hour. Add vanilla bean and allow to cool then remove. If you find it is a little thick you can add hot water to reach a good consistency.

For the Mezcal Chocoflan:

Cake:

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

½ cup buttermilk

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 egg

1 oz. Mezcal

Flan:

1 12oz can evaporated milk

1 14oz can condensed milk

4 eggs

1 oz. Mezcal

½ tsp salt

¾ cup chopped, toasted walnuts or pecans for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 inch cake pan. Pour cajeta over bottom of cake mold and spread up onto the sides of the mold with the back of a spoon. Refrigerate.

To make the cake combine sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. In a separate bowl combine buttermilk, vegetable oil, egg and mezcal. Add to the flour mixture and blend until there are no visible lumps in the batter. Pour into prepared cake mold and refrigerate.

To make the flan combine all ingredients in the blender and blend on high until there are no lumps. Pour gently into mold over cake.

Cover loosely with foil and place in a large baking dish. Place in oven and fill baking dish with boiling water to come halfway up the side of the cake. Bake for 45 minutes, then turn the oven up to 375 degrees and bake for 25-30 minutes longer until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Turn off oven and allow flan to cool for 25 minutes inside the oven, then remove from bain marie and place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours. To unmold, run a knife around the edges of the flan and carefully flip onto an inverted plate. Garnish with nuts and serve cold or at room temperature. Now try to eat just one piece!