Pear and Almond Tart
with Huckleberry Sauce

Make the most of the dreary weather with this delicious tart, filled with savory almonds and pears and a decadent side of huckleberries and vanilla ice cream. Huckleberries are now in season around wine country, as well as many other areas throughout the country, so this is a great dessert recipe to try--and an easy one, too!

INGREDIENTS
For Almond Filling:
2/3 cup blanched slivered almonds
1 Tbsp. flour
7 Tbsp. sugar
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temp.
1 egg
½ tsp. almond extract

For Poached Pears and Pastry
4 cups water
1 ¼ sugar
1 ½ Tbsp. lemon juice
5 med. sized firm pears
Powdered sugar (to garnish)
Frozen puff pastry

For Huckleberry Sauce:
3 cups Huckleberries fresh or frozen
1 cup red wine
¾ cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick
½ tsp. grated or powdered cloves
salt to taste

METHOD
For Almond Filling: Finely chop almonds and flour together in a blender or food processor. Mix in sugar and butter and mix together until smooth. Add egg and mix, then chill for 2-3 hours. This can also be made well in advance.

For Pears: Bring 4 cups water, sugar and lemon juice to boil over medium heat until sugar dissolves, then add the pears. Reduce heat and simmer until pears are very tender (about 20 min.) Then remove pears from heat and cool in sugar mixture. This can be made ahead of time.

For Huckleberry Sauce: Place all ingredients in a pan and simmer for 20 minutes. If the sauce is too thin, continue cooking until desired thickness. Remove cinnamon stick. This sauce can be made in advance and keeps well refrigerated.

Place cold puff pastry sheet onto flat surface and cut into small (about 3-4 inches across) circles. Place 1 Tbsp. of almond filling into the center of each tart. Then arrange 1/2 of a pear, sliced lenthwise, into a fan shape across the tart. Place tarts on greased or non-stick baking sheet in oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, until golden on the outside.

Add huckleberry sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream to each serving, and sprinkle top with powdered sugar.


Recipe by Chef Emily Buller of LocalPairings

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