Pear and Cranberry Pie

All ready to go in the oven! Thanksgiving this year was up in Sacramento at my in laws house and with many grandparents to watch Donut, I was free to cook away in their spacious kitchen.

Extra pie filling you say? What else can you do except make a Crostata which is a rustic italian tart for a little pre-turkey day dinner dessert.

Pie Crust

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup shortening
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup ice water

Using a pastry cutter, incorporate all ingredients together except the water until you get a nice grainy consistency (kind of like big grains of sand) and then add ice water a few tablespoons at a time and mix gently until the dough roughly holds together. Form into a loose ball and put in the fridge for a few hours before rolling. This is enough to make both the bottom and top of a 9" pie.

For the filling:

• 3 to 3 1/2-pounds pears, a mixture of Bartlett, Bosc and/or Anjou
• 1/2 cup sugar, divided
• 6 ounces dried cranberries
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

Peel and core the pears. Slice into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick wedges. Toss all of the pears with 1/4 cup of the sugar, place in a colander set over a large bowl and allow to drain for 1 1/2 hours.

Transfer the drained liquid to a small saucepan, place over medium heat and reduce to 2 tablespoons. Set aside to cool. Toss the pears with the remaining sugar, cranberries, cornstarch, lemon juice, salt and nutmeg.

Assembly

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Remove 1 disk of dough from the refrigerator. Place the dough onto a lightly floured piece of waxed paper. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and roll out into a 12-inch circle. Place into a 9 1/2 to 10-inch tart pan that is 2 inches deep. Gently press the dough into the sides of the pan, crimping and trimming the edges as necessary. Set a pie bird in the center of the bottom of the pan. Place the pears into the unbaked pie shell in concentric circles starting around the edges, working towards the center and forming a slight mound in the center of the pie. Sprinkle the cranberries a little at a time as you go.

Pour over any liquid that remains in the bowl. Roll out the second pie dough as the first. Place this dough over the apples, pressing the pie bird through the top crust. Press together the edges of the dough around the rim of the pie. Brush the top crust with the reduced juice everywhere except around the edge of the pie. Trim excess dough. Place the pie on a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake on the floor of the oven for 30 minutes. Transfer to the lower rack of the oven and continue to bake another 20 minutes or until the pears are cooked through but not mushy. Remove to a rack and cool a minimum of 4 hours or until almost room temperature.