Caramelized Pear And Roquefort Tart

Ingredients

For the crust:

• ½ cup walnuts, toasted
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 egg yolk, beaten with 4 teaspoons of water
• 4 teaspoons water

For the filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 7 to 8 medium-size firm pears, peeled, halved and cored
• 3 ounces Roquefort cheese
• ½ cup half-and-half
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 2 cups port

• Nutritional Information

  • Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

    524 calories; 25 grams fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 62 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 32 grams sugars; 7 grams protein; 104 milligrams cholesterol; 352 milligrams sodium

  Note: Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available data.
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8 servings

Preparation

1. To make the crust, put the walnuts in a food processor and pulse until ground. Add the flour, sugar and salt and pulse just to combine. Add the butter and pulse until most of the butter is incorporated into the flour. Add the yolk mixture and pulse until the dough begins to come together. Gather the dough into a ball, flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic. Chill.
2. To make the filling, melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the pears to the skillet and saute until browned on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove the pears from the skillet and repeat with the remaining pears. Set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll out the dough between large sheets of plastic wrap and fit it into a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Cover with parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and bake the crust until it is golden, about 7 minutes more.
4. Arrange the pear halves in a circle over the dough, core side down and wider end toward the edge of the pan. Fill in the center with more pears. Crumble the cheese over and around the pears.
5. Whisk together the half-and- half, sugar, egg yolks and flour. Pour over the pears. Bake until the custard is set, about 45 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, simmer the port in a small saucepan until it is reduced to a syrup. While the tart is still warm and just before serving, brush the port over the pears. Cut into wedges and serve.