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Sept. 7, 2007
Good dessert, good fortune
Fruit and honey make for a wonderful way to finish your meal.
PAM REISS
There are several food traditions associated with Rosh Hashanah.
For some, it's time to eat a new fruit that hasn't yet been eaten
this season, but for many of us, apples and challah dipped in honey
at the beginning of the meal are enough. However, to symbolize our
hope for the New Year's sweetness and good fortune, it's appropriate
to end the meal with honeyed desserts.
The first dessert described here is based on classic Middle Eastern
baklava – with the addition of apples. After the dessert is
baked, a citrus-flavored honey syrup is poured over it and left
to be absorbed by the layers of pastry, nuts and apples. In the
second dessert, the pear frangipane tart, the honey is more subtle
– it's the finishing touch that adds a final hint of sweetness.
APPLE PECAN BAKLAVA
1 lb. phyllo dough
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
Apple layer
2 lb. Granny Smith apples – peeled, cored and diced
2 tbsp. honey
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbsp. flour
Nut layer
4 cups pecan halves, approximately 3/4 lb.
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
Syrup
2/3 cup honey
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups water
lemon zest, from 1 lemon
orange zest, from 1 orange
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp. fresh orange juice
Apple layer: Place the apples, honey and cinnamon into a
nonstick skillet, stirring over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes,
or until all the liquid has evaporated and the apples have softened.
Remove from the heat and add flour, stirring until it's mixed in.
Cool.
Nut layer: Place the pecans, sugar and cinnamon in the food
processor. Pulse until the pecans are coarsely ground. If you start
with ground pecans (3/4 lb.), just mix them with the sugar and cinnamon
in a bowl.
Assembly: Melt the margarine/ butter and use a pastry brush
to coat a three-quart or a 13-by-nine-by-two-inch baking dish. Cut
the phyllo sheets in half, then lay one sheet on the bottom of the
baking dish. Lightly brush with butter/margarine and repeat with
another five layers of phyllo. Sprinkle one quarter of the nut mixture
(about one cup) over the phyllo, and layer another five sheets of
phyllo, continuing to brush each sheet with butter/margarine. Repeat
the nut mixture and another five sheets of phyllo, then add all
of the cooked apples, spreading them out in an even layer. Top with
another five sheets of phyllo, one cup of nuts, five sheets of phyllo,
one cup of nuts and then top it off with the final seven sheets
of phyllo.
Use a serrated knife to carefully cut the baklava into pieces. Traditionally,
baklava is cut diagonally, so that the pieces form diamonds. Make
sure you cut right through to the bottom.
Place in a preheated, 375-degree oven and bake for 45 minutes, or
until a dark golden brown.
Syrup: As the baklava bakes, prepare the syrup. Place all
of the syrup ingredients into a pot over medium-high heat and stir.
Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for five
minutes. Keep the syrup warm (on a very low element) until the baklava
has finished baking. Remove the baklava from the oven and carefully
pour the syrup, through a strainer, over the baklava. Once the liquid
hits the baklava, it may start to boil and splatter, so be very
careful.
Let the baklava cool for at least an hour before serving. This dessert
can be made a day ahead.
PEAR FRANGIPANE TART
Crust
1 1/2 cups flour
3 tbsp. sugar
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup butter or margarine, cold
1 large egg
2 tbsp. cold water
Frangipane
1 cup ground almonds
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 tbsp. flour
Pears
2 medium pears
lemon juice – from 1 lemon
1 tbsp. honey
Crust: Place the flour, sugar, salt and cold butter/margarine
into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse the machine off and on
until you have a course meal (the pieces of butter should be smaller
than peas). Lightly whisk the egg and add it, along with the water.
Pulse until the dough just comes together, but is still a little
rough and crumbly. If it's very dry, add another tablespoon of water.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead
just enough to pull the dough together into a ball.
Lightly flour a rolling pin and roll the dough out into a circle
that's approximately a quarter-inch thick. Gently fold the dough
in half, and then in half again, to form a triangle. Transfer the
dough to a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, and carefully
unfold. Gently press the dough into the sides, allowing the excess
to hang over the edge. Use a sharp knife to trim away any excess
dough. Use a fork to dock (prick) the dough, then chill for at least
one hour. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and bake the crust for
15 minutes, or until it is a light, golden brown. Remove and cool.
Frangipane: Place all of the ingredients into the bowl of
the food processor and run the machine until everything is combined.
Stop the machine, use a spatula to scrape down the sides and then
run the machine for another 10-15 seconds. Use the spatula to scrape
all of the frangipane into the cooled tart shell and spread it out
into an even, smooth layer.
Pears: Fill a large bowl halfway with cold water. Squeeze
the juice of one lemon into the bowl. Wash, peel and core the pears.
Slice the pears into thin wedges and place them immediately into
the acidulated water. Once they're all sliced, remove them from
the water and dry them off with some paper towel. Place the slices
on top of the tart, so that they look like a flower, with the thicker
ends at the outer edge of the crust, and all the thinner ends pointing
in. Brush the pears with honey and place in a preheated, 375-degree
oven.
Bake the tart for 35-40 minutes, or until the exposed frangipane
is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool. Carefully remove
the tart from the pan – it should come out easily – and
place on a serving dish. This dish can be made one to two days ahead
of time, if kept covered and refrigerated.
Pam Reiss lives in Winnipeg and is the author of Soup
– A Kosher Collection.
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