Brie and Pear Tart ~ Ile De France Cheese Giveaway

September 22, 2011

Brie and Pear Tart ~ Ile De France Cheese Giveaway

Fall is upon us. Time for picking apples, making hot beverages, and baking a sweet and savory Brie and Pear Tart Recipe. Maybe the latter isn’t a traditional fall activity, but I assure you, it should be at the top of everyone’s list!

If you’ve been reading ASP very long, you know, there are very few things I enjoy as much as cheese. In fact I believe cheese to be an ingredient that makes every other ingredient better. Don’t believe me?

Cheese and Chocolate: Ricotta Chocolate Chip Muffins

Cheese and Seafood: Southern Shrimp and Cheesy Grits

Cheese and Pumpkin: Creamy Chocolate Pumpkin Bar

Cheese and Pickles: Ploughman’s Lunch

Cheese and Beets: Roasted Beet and Radicchio Salad

See… and you doubted.

Recently I received a package from Ile De France Cheese. I couldn’t have been happier receiving a box of Italian shoes or rare gemstones. Ile De France asked if I would taste their brie and goat cheese then compare them to other popular brands. They wondered if I could taste a difference.

As I sat in giddy euphoria, scooping little nibbles with a cheese knife that I put STRAIGHT into my mouth, I did notice some differences…

First the brie: A small, but note-worthy observation, the Ile De France Brie was packaged better than the other two cheeses. No, I was not swayed by pretty packaging. Better air-tight wrapping gave the Ile De France brie a much fresher taste. The brie was bright and ripe with a nutty back note. The texture was also extremely creamy, while one of the others was dense and the third was a bit gummy.

As for the goat cheese: I noticed again, a distinct freshness that was not apparent in the other two cheeses. It was delicately tangy with a smooth texture, yet crumbly when cold and spreadable at room temperature.

The reason, I learned, for the impeccable flavor is the Ile De France “La Creme du Jour” crafting process. They make their cheeses the same day the cream is extracted–within 48 hours of the time of milking. The cows and goats are grass-fed to guarantee superior taste, better health benefits, and a much more eco-friendly cheese. It’s comforting to find companies who put that much thought into what they offer us.

I adore pairing fruit and cheese. This simple, yet elegant, Brie and Pear Tart recipe holds the perfect balance of sweet and savory. It is not exactly a dessert, or an appetizer… it’s both!

Serve this as a luxurious first-course, as a main course with a salad, or as a european-style dessert (meaning not super sweet.) Anyway you serve this tart, it’s sure to be a show stopper.

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Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Brie and Pear Tart

Ingredients:

1 roll out refrigerated pie crust (or make from scratch)
1 wedge of Ile De France Brie, about ½ lb.
3-4 ripe pears
¼ cup brown sugar
1 ½ Tb. Pear Brandy (or pear schnapps)
Salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roll out the piecrust and carefully fit it down into the tart pan—making sure not to stretch the dough. Fold the excess dough inward and press into the ridges of the pan.

Slice the brie into thin strips. Cover the bottom of the tart with the brie and press around evenly.

Cut pears into super-thin slices. Overlap them around the exterior of the tart pan, leaving a whole in the middle.

Then stand the slices up and press into the exposed brie, creating the shape of a rose. Continue to bend and overlap the pears all the way to the center. It will take very thin slices to curl in the middle.

Mix the brown sugar and pear brandy in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the pears; then sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 30-40 minutes—until the brie is bubbling up and the crust in golden.

Sit for 10 minutes before extracting it from the tart pan and cutting.

Served on beautiful Villeroy & Boch dishes.

I have a fantastic Ile De France Giveaway for you today!

One LUCKY reader will receive this gorgeous cheese board and dome, a cheese knife, and a delicious assortment of Ile De France Cheeses.

To Enter: ~CLOSED~

Leave a comment describing your favorite way to eat brie or goat cheese.

For additional entries:

Follow Ile De France Cheese on Facebook and/or Twitter.

Follow ASP on Facebook and/or Twitter

Share this on Facebook and/or Twitter: Simple Elegant Brie and Pear Tart and AMAZING @IDFCheese Giveaway on @SpicyPerspectiv ~ Don’t miss it! http://aspicyperspective.com/?p=7311

(Leave a separate comment for each entry.)

For US residents only.

A winner will be selected by random drawing and announced September 29th. Winner: Craftwhack