​Pear Gruyère Foldovers
 
makes one baker’s dozen (13)
 
1 tablespoon pear honey ginger shrub from The Hudson Standard OR apple cider vinegar
5 tablespoons ice cold water
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup white whole wheat flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
generous pinch of freshly ground black pepper
4 oz. gruyère cheese, grated and frozen
5.3 oz.  (⅔ cup) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
1 lb. 4 oz. ripe but firm pears (depending on the size, 2-3 pears will yield 2 cups of fruit)
zest of 1 small lemon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¼ cup light brown sugar
¼ teaspoon cardamom
2 teaspoons cornstarch
 
egg wash made from one egg beaten with 2 tablespoons heavy cream
 
Combine the shrub or apple cider vinegar and the ice cold water in a small pyrex measuring cup. Place in the freezer.
 
Place both flours, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to blend. Add the frozen/grated gruyère and the cold butter pieces, pulsing just until the mixture forms coarse crumbs. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl. Retrieve the vinegar/ice cold water from the freezer. You may not need all of the liquid, so add only a tablespoon at a time to the flour/butter mixture, using a fork to combine. Test the dough to see if it holds together; if it feels a bit dry, add a little more, just until the dough comes together. Gather the dough into a disc, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour before rolling out.
 
Prepare the filling-
 
Rinse, peel, and core the pears. Cut them into thick chunks, place them in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice. In a small bowl, whisk together the zest, brown sugar, cardamom, and cornstarch. Don’t combine the fruit with the sugar/spices yet or they will release too much liquid. Set aside while you roll out the dough.
 
Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit on the counter to warm up for about ten minutes. On a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, roll the dough into a circle about ⅛” thick and 14” in diameter. Cut out thirteen 4½”circles, dividing them between two parchment lined baking sheets. Refrigerate for 10 minutes. Combine the pears with the sugar/spices and toss to coat. Retrieve the dough from the fridge. Set the egg wash nearby. Place one tablespoon of fruit in the center of each portion of dough. Brush just the edge of each pastry with the egg wash and fold the dough over the filling, sealing the edges. Brush each pastry with egg wash and prick the tops with a fork to allow steam to release. Return the pastries to the fridge and let them chill for 30 minutes before baking so they hold their shape in the oven.
 
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
 
Bake at 425 degrees F for five minutes, reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and bake for an additional 15-18 minutes, until golden. Best served warm but no complaints when you serve them at room temperature.

​Pistachio Tart Crust
 
(makes enough for one 10” tart pan with removable bottom)
 
⅔ cup unsalted roasted pistachios
¼ cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
⅛ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon lemon zest
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted, cold butter, cut into ½” pieces
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
 
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse the pistachios with the sugar until the nuts are finely ground. Add the flour, salt, and lemon zest, pulsing a few times to incorporate the flour with the sugar and nuts. Add the cold butter pieces, pulsing just until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Turn the mixture into a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and heavy cream. Add the yolk and cream to the flour/butter mixture, tossing it together with a fork. Gather the mixture together and shape it into a disc. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least half an hour before rolling out.
 
On a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, roll out the dough into a circle about 12” in diameter and about ⅛” thick. Carefully flip the parchment onto the tart pan, peeling back the parchment to release the dough. Use your fingers to smooth the dough against the bottom of the pan and evenly along the sides. The dough should extend over the edge of the tart pan. Use lightly floured fingers to create a decorative edge, standing about ½” above the tart ring. Place the tart shell in the freezer to firm up before blind baking.
 
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the tart shell on a baking sheet and line the tart with parchment paper and beans. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and carefully remove the parchment paper and beans. Prick the bottom of the tart shell with a fork. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Return the shell to the oven for an additional 5-8 minutes, just until the tart shell is set and the bottom is dry. Set on a rack to cool while you prepare the filling.
 
For the filling- (There are three separate measurements for sugar; one is for the sautéed apples, one is for the custard and the last one is  for caramelizing the top (optional).
 
3 firm textured apples, (weighing about 1¾ lbs.) washed, peeled, cored and sliced ½” thick (I used a mixture of Honeycrisp and Northern Spy apples)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
⅓ cup sugar
1 cup heavy cream
¾ cup whole milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon lemon zest
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
⅛ teaspoon salt
freshly grated nutmeg for the top of the tart
 
¼ cup granulated sugar, if you with to caramelize the top of the tart (see Note)
 
Set the apple slices in a medium bowl and toss to coat with the lemon juice. In a heavy bottomed sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the sugar and the apple slices, cooking over low heat for about 7 minutes, until the apple slices become tender but not overly soft. Use a slotted spoon to remove the apple slices and place them back in the medium bowl. Reduce the juices in the sauté pan until they thicken. Add them to the apple slices; set the apple slices aside to cool down a bit while you prepare the custard. 
 
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla extract, lemon zest, cardamom, and salt. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, heat the heavy cream and milk until small bubbles appear around the sides and the liquid is warm to the touch. Gradually add a little of the heated cream and milk to the egg mixture, whisking it constantly to prevent the egg from scrambling. Continue adding the remaining cream and milk to the eggs, whisking constantly, until the custard is smooth. Transfer this mixture to a large Pyrex measuring cup with a spout.
 
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cooled tart shell on a parchment lined baking sheet. Use a slotted spoon to remove the apple slices from the bowl and spread them evenly in the bottom of the tart shell. (Leave the extra juices from the apples in the bowl; they will break down the custard too much. You can reduce them and drizzle them alongside each slice of tart, if you wish.) Place the baking sheet with the tart shell on the middle rack of the oven. Pull the rack out and carefully pour the custard over the apple slices. Grate nutmeg over the top of the tart. Gently move the rack back in and bake the tart for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, add aluminum foil strips to the edges of the tart to prevent overbrowning. Bake an additional 20 minutes until the tart has the least bit of wobble in the very center. It will continue to set up as it cools. Carefully place the baking sheet with the tart on a cooling rack. Let it cool for at least one hour before serving. (Be careful when removing the outer ring of the tart pan.)
 
Note: This tart lends itself beautifully to a bruléed top. After removing the tart from the oven, let it cool completely. Loosely cover the tart with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour (or overnight.) Remove the plastic wrap. Gently dab it dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle the tart evenly with ¼ cup granulated sugar. Use a kitchen torch to brulée the top of the tart. Use a sharp knife to cut the tart; refrigerate any leftovers.

 (Makes one 9" pie or four 4½” mini-springform sized pies)

First things first- roast 3 or 4 sweet potatoes (pierced with a fork and wrapped in aluminum foil) in the oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until they test tender with a knife. (You will need 2 cups of sweet potato pulp for the recipe.) It's really better to roast them in the oven, not cook them in the microwave or boil them. In the oven, the skins start to caramelize giving the potatoes a deeper flavor.

The crust: (makes enough for two single 9" crusts or four single 4 and 1/2" mini-springform crusts with a little left over)

2 and 1/2   cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt 
2 teaspoons sugar
generous pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
2 sticks (8 oz.) cold unsalted butter, cut in small cubes
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons cold buttermilk 

Whisk together flour, salt, sugar and nutmeg in a large bowl. Using your fingers or a bench scraper, cut in the cold butter  and zest until the mixture is crumbly. Add the cold buttermilk combining gently until the mixture forms a soft dough.  Pat into two equal discs, turn each out onto two  pieces of plastic wrap, wrapping them completely.  Refrigerate for one hour. When the dough has chilled, roll out one disc on a lightly floured surface and fit it into an 9" pie plate. You can freeze the other disc for another time. If you are making four mini-pies in the springform pans, you will need one and one half discs of dough. Divide the dough  into 4 even pieces.  Roll each portion of dough an 1/8"  thick and  line each of  the four mini-springform pans, pressing the dough gently across the bottom and up the sides.  Use your thumb to indent the edges of the pie dough and place the unbaked shell(s) in the freezer. You will have a small portion of dough remaining that you can wrap and freeze for another use.)

The Filling:

2 cups of roasted sweet potatoes (just the pulp, not the skin)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
2 Tablespoons sweet butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon bourbon
1/2 teaspoon orange zest- add after straining

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Place the potatoes, sugars, egg, cream, butter, vanilla, salt,  spices, and bourbon in the bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment with the mixer on low, combine the ingredients until smooth. Do not over mix. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer then stir in the orange zest.  Set the filling aside and prepare the pecan syrup:

The Pecan Syrup:

1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1 large egg, room temperature
1 Tablespoon melted unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon bourbon
pinch salt 
3/4 cup pecan halves

Combine the sugar, corn syrup, egg, melted butter, vanilla and salt in a bowl until sugar dissolves and the mixture is well blended. Stir in the pecans.

To assemble: Retrieve the pie crust(s) from the freezer and set on a parchment lined baking pan. Pour the sweet potato filling into the prepared pie crust(s) and spread evenly with a small offset spatula. Pour the pecan syrup on top of the sweet potato layer. (Be careful not to overfill; if you have a few tablespoons of pecan syrup left over, you can refrigerate it for up to 4 days and add it to pecan pie filling.) Place the pie(s) on the bottom shelf  of the  pre-heated 325 degree oven. Bake for about an hour; if you're baking the smaller pies, they  should be done in an hour but the larger pie might need additional time.  The pecans will rise to the top as the pie bakes; test the filling with a knife, it should come out clean. If not, bake an additional 5-10 minutes. Place the pie(s) on a rack to cool. You can serve this on its own or whip up 1 cup of  heavy cream, 2 tablespoons of confectioner's sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. At the restaurant, we added a serious splash of Frangelico or bourbon to the whipped cream. I most definitely recommend it.    ​Wrap and refrigerate any leftover pie and whipped cream.