Be sure to display this elegant dessert before serving!
Difficulty: Average
Freezes Well
Serves 8
Ingredients:
Pastry
- 1-1/3 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
- 1/2 cup cold butter or margarine
- 1 egg yolk
Filling
- 1 small package (3 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons kirsch (optional)
- 1 large can (1 pound 13 ounces) pear halves, drained
- 2/3 cup apricot jam
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 300°.
- Sift together flour, sugar and 1 teaspoon lemon peel.
- Add butter and crumble with fingers until mealy.
- Stir in egg yolk.
- Mix into ball.
- Press in a 9″-10″ quiche dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Cool.
- In small bowl of electric mixer, beat cream cheese.
- Slowly blend in whipping cream.
- Add confectioners’ sugar, lemon peel, juice, almond extract, vanilla and kirsch.
- Beat until mixture is as thick as stiffly beaten cream.
- Spoon into pastry shell and spread evenly.
- Cut off one end of one pear half to shape into a round. Place it in center.
- Arrange remaining pears around center pear and push slightly into filling.
- Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Pour jam into pan and melt quickly.
- Pour over pears and filling.
- Sprinkle with almonds.
- Refrigerate until serving.