What do we do when there is cold stormy weather in paradise? We fill the house with the intoxicating aromas of spicy warm wine. The last weekend as the storm unleashed its fury for several days with torrential rain and high winds which ripped out several trees in our neighborhood and took the garden furniture for a spin so we decided to make something decadent like a cake or tart. Ever since we baked our first poached pear tart from a recipe found in our old Hungarian cookbook we have been yearning to make a tart with fragrant wine and fruit again. This storm gave us the perfect occasion for this and we added a little more delight with meringue to make it a red Wine Poached Pear Meringue Tart.
As the rain and wind played outside we turned on music (the Girls Aloud “Can’t Speak French”) and started to peel the few remanding juicy Bosc pears. Bosc pears are also know as Beurré Bosc and are a European type of pear that is grown in Europe, Australia, parts of Canada, and in the north west of the U.S., even in California. They have longer necks and a more solid consistency than other pears. We had made poached pears the day before, but had gluttonously eaten them so we had to make more for the tart. With the pears set out on the table in front of Corina’s painting of a pear, we first opened a bottle of leftover Syrah and as the fruity wine notes whiffed to our nose we quickly poured the wine into a large pot and started cooking it over medium-high heat. A wine country chef once taught us that it is better to reduce the wine a little before submerging the fruit. It gives a deeper flavor to the fruit without cooking it too long.
With the pears happily sitting in their wine bath we roasted the hazelnuts and assembled the dough for the tart so that it could rest for at least an hour in the fridge before baking. As soon as the tart shell was baked and cooled we were more than ready to add the wine poached pears and the fluffy gorgeous meringue. Judit’s mom (Corina’s grandmother) was the inspiration for the meringue since she would often make little meringue cookies for a simple dessert in the past and we had been missing her desserts. Whenever we would visit her there was always dessert waiting and a hearty meal in the making. The meringue gives a little sweetness to the pears and dresses it in pure elegance like a ballerinas frothy lace tutu.
To pair with this tasty red wine poached pear meringue tart we had a lovely bottle of Mosby Dolcetto with dark red fruit, rosemary, and wood notes that remind you an afternoon stroll in a forest after the rain. This particular wine comes from the Mosby Winery & Vineyard located in the Santa Barbara County just south of Buellton and the tasting room is a rustic red barn nestled among beautiful vineyards. Whenever we go for a visit to Mosby, we find the views from the vineyards equally captivating, with gentle hills framing the vineyards and fluffy clouds dotting the sky like little meringues that you just want to reach out and take a bite of one.
In the spring bright bursts of orange flowers, that are known as the California Poppy, cluster about the tasting room. These poppies are the official state flower since 1903 and a symbol of the Golden State since early Spanish settlers called them “copa de oro”, which means cup of gold. Mosby Winey is known for Italian varietals and owner and winemaker Bill Mosby was inspired by a trip to Italy to plant varietals such as Dolcetto and Sangiovese. Italy can be felt on the wine bottles as well with labels that are little works of art from an Italian artist. The Mosby Dolcetto brought out the deeper fruit and spice notes of the pears and magically made the tart disappear from our plates! It was such a treat that we look forward to making this red wine poached pear tart again very soon.
Wine Poached Pear Meringue Tart
Ingredients
For the Tart
- ½ cup 60g Hazelnuts - roasted, skin removed and finely ground
- 1 cup 125g Hazelnut Flour or Whole Wheat Flour
- ⅛ Tsp Sea Salt
- 3 Tbsp 50g Coconut Sugar Sugar
- 8 113g Tbsp Unsalted Butter - cold and cut into small pieces
- 1 Egg Yolk - beaten
- 1 Tbsp White Wine
- For the Filling
- 3 - 4 Wine Poached Pears
For Meringue Topping:
- 3 Egg Whites
- ¾ cup 150g Swerve or Superfine Sugar
- A pinch of Cream of Tartar
- A pinch of fine Sea Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F
- Roast the hazelnuts on a parchment covered cookie sheet for 5 to 7 minutes. Let them cool for 2 - 3 minutes. Carefully place between paper towels and rub off the skin. Transfer the nuts to a food processor and pulse until finely ground.
- Preheat oven to 375°F
- In in a large bowl combine the finely ground hazelnuts, hazelnut flour, sea salt and coconut sugar. Add the cold butter cubes and working quickly with your hands knead the dough until large crumbs form.
- In a a small bowl whisk egg yolk with wine.
- Add egg yolk mixture to the dough and continue to mix for about 1 minute.
- Turn the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap and shape into a flat disc.
- Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (you can leave it over night or freeze). Remove 30 minutes before rolling out on a slightly floured surface. Roll out the pastry dough about ¼ inch thick and 2 inch larger then your tart pan with removable bottom. Gently press the dough to the bottom and sides and cut off the excess around the edges. With a fork pierce all over.
- Line the unbaked tart shell with thin aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dry beans. Bake for 15 minutes or until edges turn light brown.
- Remove the foil with the weights and bake for 10 minutes or until crust turns golden color. Let it cool before removing from tart pan. (you can make the crust a day ahead)
For the Filling
- Slice the poached pears lengthwise and with a teaspoon scoop out cores. Lay cut side down, remove stem and cut into 4 -5 slices by leaving the stem-end intact. Arrange pears cut side down in the tart pan.
- For Meringue Topping
- Turn on broiler.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer with the whisk attachment whisk the egg whites until frothy. Sprinkle in the sea salt and Creme of Tart. Slowly add Swerve or sugar and continue to whisk until meringue become glossy and forms stiff peaks.
- Spoon the meringue over the tart and with a spatula making decorative swirling motion to cover the top. Place the tart on middle rack in ocean and broil about 2 minutes until meringue starts to brown on top. Make sure you keep checking frequently as the top can burn quickly.
For the Red Wine Poached Pear recipe click here.
Hope you enjoy this delcious treat and let us know what your favorite meringue dessert is.
Nice recipe and great site! I wish I was able to take pictures as nice as yours! 🙂
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous and that’s for you both and the tart. Have a good weekend! 🙂
~ ray ~
That is so sweet of you to say Ray! We really enjoyed making this pear tart and eating it even more. Have a great week!
Cheers!
J+C
First, you both look so pretty…and the dessert just sounds and looks fabulous…I like the hazelnut crust and the poached pears…and the meringue…so elegant!
Thank you so this lovely recipe and this wonderful post.
Have a beautiful weekend 😀
You are so kind Juliana, thank you for the compliments. It is nice to be able to prepare the pears ahead of time since the meringue tastes best when eaten right away and we really enjoyed the texture of the pears with a touch of sweetness. Have a wonderful week!
Cheers!
J+C
Pears are one of my favorite fruits. I also love meringue, but I never would have thought to top a pear tart with it. Great idea! The results are stunning!
Thank you Laura, this is one of our favorite desserts and we love that it is so simple to make since you can prepare the pears ahead of time and it is not too sweet.
Cheers!
J+C
I have never met a Hungarian treat that I don’t like it. This tart looks like made in heaven. You have outdone yourselves again. Thanks for sharing these gorgeous photos which transport me to California — a happy place!
Hope you are having a great weekend Denise and glad you liked our dessert recipe! We did had a fun time making this simple pear tart and enjoyed eating it even more. Meringue is a childhood favorite that we grew up with and brings us back to grandma’s kitchen every time.
Cheers!
J+C
what beauty! beauty all over the place! this must taste as good as it looks–the touch of hazelnuts is amazing.
Thank you Grace! The hazelnut gives a lovely nutty flavor to the whole tart 🙂
A delightful tart! I really love the idea.
Cheers,
Rosa
Thank you Rosa, and hope you are having a great week 🙂
Cheers,
J+C
This tart looks gorgeous! The meringue adds such a nice sophisticated touch. I’ve never made a dessert with meringue… feeling tempted now. Anyway, beautiful photography!
Meringue is very simple to make Ruby! It sounds more complicated then really is. You just have to make sure that you beat the egg whites, sugar and the Cream of Tartar until it becomes very stiff. And to bake just keep watching because it does burn fast. Hope you will try it soon 🙂
I can never resist a good dessert, especially an easy, yet elegant looking one like your Poached Pear Meringue Tart. I love pears and will try this one soon. Thanks for the recipe and the blog-love!
Oh the power of a delicious dessert Betty Ann! Enjoy the recipe and hope you can try it soon 🙂
J+C
What a gorgeous recipe, the pear is so gourmet because of the wine poaching 😀
How creative!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thank you dear Choc Chip Uru! Hope you try it sometimes 🙂
Cheers,
J+C
This looks fab and very delicious!
Thank you Jessica!
J+C
Yum!!! Love it and want it! This pear tart looks so fantastic and love the painting of the pear also.
pears… any time, anyhow, anywhere! 🙂 may I have some, please?… 😉
Glad you like pears too Mélanie, it is such a flavorful fruit! Wish we could send you some 🙂
J+C
I don’t make nearly enough pear desserts! Your tart looks spectacular…and I hope to give it a try next fall 🙂
Hello Liz! Hope you will enjoy this simple recipe!
Cheers,
J+C
This is gorgeous! So fancy, too. Pear-fection!
Thank you Ashley, so glad you like poached pears!
Cheers,
J+C
What a nice dish to try during the stormy weather! My niece lives in L.A. and she commented on the big stormy day that SoCal had recently. What a coincidence! Just a few minutes ago I posted a recipe using Syrah wine, but we call in ‘Shiraz’ wine here in Australia (Shiraz and Lamb Pie recipe). It’s a nice full-bodied wine! (I could use a drink now)!
Hello Fran! Oh yes it was a fairly turbulent storm. And even a few trees were ripped out in our neighborhood. Australia has so many fruity Shiraz and your recipe sounds heavenly.
Cheers to a great Shiraz,
J+C
Your recipes are really lovely. I’m looking forward to trying a few soon…but the pears immediately. 🙂
Thanks for the culinary delights!
~Lisa
So kind of you Lisa! It is a great pleasure to share our delicious inspirations from our kitchen.
Cheers,
J+C
So glad you enjoy the recipes Lisa, and hope you will like the pears too.
Cheers,
J+C
Wow, the tart is not only beautiful it sounds delicious. I love your photos.
Hello Dawn, so glad you you enjoyed the photos and hope you will try this simple tart soon.
J+C
Dears this is absolutely delicious and beautiful, I bookmarked, I wanna try soon!!
xx
Thank you so much Dear Gloria, and hope you will enjoy this tart soon.
J+C
Really cool recipe! Looks very professional and makes you want to try a big piece or even two. Have a good weekend!
Thank you Tyler! This tart is easy to make and our friends love it too. Hope you will enjoy the recipe.
Cheers,
J+C
The pear tart looks stunning! I love your rectangular tart pan too.
Hi Angie! It is a great pan for baking tarts, and the removable bottom makes it so easy. We purchased not long ago from Williams Sonoma.
Cheers,
J+C
I love making tarts – your tart looks so delicious – I want it for dessert right now even though it’s too late and I shouldn’t eat anything this late. 🙂 Beautiful photography, girls!
Thank you Julia! Ha ha we were just talking about that we wish would have a piece of this delicious tart for breakfast:)
J+C
Oh my gosh – that tart looks AMAZING! When I saw the vertical shot of the tart (next to the red barn picture), my mouth watered, and I literally imagined devouring that delicious thing! So yum! And absolutely gorgeous pictures! I completely resonate with the rainy picture one. 🙂 I’m from WA! So great to see that you made the most of it! I love it!
Judit, and Corina, that is one gorgeous pear tart…love the crust, and the filling. The meringue topping is so fluffy and super yumm! Hugs,
The photos are superb, and you are lovely, and awesome ladies! xoxo
Thank you so much Kedves Elisabeth! This tart is so much simpler to make then it looks and already planing to make it again soon. Hope you are having a wonderful week.
Hugs,
J+C
I’m in love with your photos, too! The pear meringue is a fabulous idea, especially with the hazelnut tart case. I never would have imagined that you could successfully put wine in something like this … but why not?! We have pear cider, after all!
Thank you so much Helen! The hazelnut really made the tart crust a little crisper and the roasted nutty taste enhanced the fruit flavors beautifully. We have a pie crust recipe where we used so flaky3 tbsp chardonnay instead of water and the crust was really tender and flaky.
J+C
such a beautiful tart! love your photos!
Thank you Sarah & Arkadi and hope you are having a great week!
J+C
Those tarts are lovely and delicious like works of art! The photo of you both looks so beautiful and fun. I love lemon meringue and am sure I will love this wine poached pear meringue as well. Looking forward to trying it with a glass of wine.
You are so kind Beatrice and hope you will enjoy the recipe!
Cheers,
J+C