Butterscotch Pear Tart with a Snickerdoodle Crust

I’m not sure what happened this past weekend, but I had this unidentifiable voice telling me – Lori, you’ve been posting way too many Brussels sprouts and squash recipes. I think it’s time to go a little crazy with some holiday desserts. 

Done. 

So this week I have two ideas that will veer from the traditional pecan and pumpkin pies. The first being this pear tart.

I was recently introduced to Korean Butterscotch Pears. They are a huge fruit with this interesting ability to be both crisp and juicy at the same time. They aren’t soft like a standard U.S. pear and they have much more flavor than other Asian pears I’ve tasted. To be honest, I really don’t like Asian pears all that much.

But these are different.

I pulled myself away from eating them all fresh and decided to make a super simple tart. I promise. This is so simple. 

First comes the snickerdoodle crust. Then it’s topped with thinly sliced pears. Finally, I decided I couldn’t make something using a fruit with butterscotch in the name without adding some type of butterscotch component so just before serving this gets a hit of a rich, thick sauce.

The sauce is just as easy to make as the tart, but if you want to skip the sauce and head straight to a scoop of vanilla ice cream you definitely have my blessing. 

What you’ll need:

Crust
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine ground sea salt
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 3/4 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour

Filling
1 Butterscotch pear, thinly sliced (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Butterscotch sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup half and half
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon fine ground sea salt

How to make it:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 

For the crust, cream together the butter and sugar in an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add in the vanilla, cinnamon, salt and cream of tartar. Gradually mix in the flour with the mixer on low. Turn to medium and mix until combined, about 1 minute. 

Press the dough into a 15×5 inch rectangle tart pan. Bake for 5 minutes. 

To make the filling, stir together the pears, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Arrange the pear slices over the crust. Bake for an additional 18 to 20 minutes, until the edges are browned and the cookie crust is baked through. 

While the tart bakes, make the butterscotch. Stir together the brown sugar, half and half and butter in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes, until the sauce coats the back of the spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Set aside and allow it to cool and thicken. 

Remove sides of the tart pan. Drizzle the tart with the sauce just before serving, or serve the sauce on the side.