TWD: Fold-Over Pear Torte

Pears.

I guess you either love them or hate them. Reading the P&Q comments, it would appear that many of the TWD bakers hate them.

I, on the other hand, LOVE them. Always have. There is nothing better than a fresh pear at its peak of perfection.

However, my offspring doesn't share my affection for pears. It's a texture thing, she says. I give her credit, though. She did take one bit of this torte, unasked. But, that was it.



Now, I'm a patient person most of the time.

However, on a Frustration Scale of 1 to 10, this torte was a 15. Maybe a 20. All because of the crust.


Sure. Just try to fit a flat disc of pie dough into an 8-inch wide, 3-inch deep springform pan.

The sides kept flopping onto the bottom. The instructions said, turn the pan on its side to make it easier to insert crust.

Easier? No. The top side would flop down over the bottom side, even as I rotated the pan.

Resisting the urge to crumple the dough into a solid ball and fling it across the room, I hooked the longer side pieces over the edge of the pan, then quickly shoved it into the refrigerator to harden.



While the crust was chilling, I prepared the filling and the custard, followed by Frustrating Experience No. 2.

The instructions said to gently push the edges of the crust away from the sides of the pan, but Don't let it fall into the custard. Say again? Did the pie crust read and understand those instructions?



Nope.

Enough of this silliness. Into the oven with you!




Call it rustic charm. It may not have looked beautiful, but it sure did taste delicious. Especially with powdered sugar on top to cleverly cover up the knife hole. Sort of.



To be truthful, it tasted great. The creamy custard layer played against the texture of the fruit and nut layer. And the pie crust. . . . I'm a sucker for my pie crust. It's probably my favorite part.




So that I wouldn't be tempted, I gave half of the torte to my dear neighbor, who told me that it disappeared very quickly. My half did, too.





Thanks to Gaye (Cakelaw) of Laws of the Kitchen for choosing a delicious, if not challenging, dessert. You'll find the recipe on her blog.


And, you'll find more variations and comments from the other bakers on the Tuesdays with Dorie website.