Recipe Friday: National Pear Month

In a large mixing bowl, sift together bread flour and salt. Using a mixer, combine yeast and sugar. Mix by hand instructions are in the notes. Warm up water until it reaches 110°F. Pour into the bowl with the yeast. Add in the olive oil. Mix for 10 seconds.

Using a dough hook, add in all of the flour and start mixing on low. Once a dough starts to form, mix on medium for 5 minutes. The dough should be slightly sticky.

Place dough ball in large measuring bowl that has been lightly sprayed with a non-stick spray. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rise for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 550°F as hot as your oven can go. Place a pizza stone in the oven while it preheats. The stone should be heating up the whole time the dough is rising.

Once it is double in size, punch the dough down once with your fist. Place a large parchment paper on the counter that is lightly sprinkled with flour. Make sure dough ball is circular before placing on the parchment paper.

Use your fingers to spread the dough evenly. Once it won’t spread any more. Pull the dough with your hands letting gravity do it’s job. Go along all the edges. The pizza should be between 10-11.5 inches wide and be circular.

This sauce can be made ahead of time. In a sauce pan over medium-low heat, combine tomato sauce and all of the seasonings. Heat until sauce is boiling. Remove from heat. 

Spread the pizza sauce on top of the pizza dough. Use the back of the spoon to spread it evenly. Keep about 1 inch of pizza dough along the edge free of sauce.

Sprinkle all of the shredded provolone cheese on top of the sauce. Fill in the gaps with the mozzarella cheese. The whole pizza should be covered in cheese. Sprinkle the chopped basil and chopped rosemary on top of the cheese.

Top the cheese with the pancetta and salami. Line the pizza with the pears.

Place the parchment paper with the pizza on a large cutting board. Place the parchment paper and pizza on the hot pizza stone. Bake for 6-8 minutes. Check it at 6 minutes. Bake until cheese is starting to become golden brown.

Once the pizza comes out of the oven, there will be a lot of juice from the pears. Dab the pizza with a paper towel to soak up the juices. Cut the pizza and serve.

Preheat the oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Set the brie out to warm to room temperature.

Add honey to a small bowl. Remove the leaves from the thyme stems and muddle them into the honey with a spoon. Note: if your honey is solidified, submerge in hot water until liquid, about 5 minutes.

Place the brie on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until liquid in the center.

While the brie is baking, slice pears into thin wedges, removing the seeds and core.

Remove brie from the oven and carefully transfer the brie onto a serving platter. Arrange the pear wedges on top of the brie, sprinkle the pomegranate seeds over the pears, and drizzle evenly with honey.

Enjoy right away by slicing wedges into the brie and dipping the pears into the melted brie or spooning the brie and toppings onto slices of baguette.

Peel pear and core from the bottom to extract core and seeds.

In a saucepan, combine wine, granulated sugar, five spice, cinnamon and cloves. Add pears and just enough wine to cover pears. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until pears are tender, about 30 minutes. Remove pears and cool to room temperature. Cover and chill.

Simmer wine mixture until reduced to a syrupy consistency.

Whip mascarpone, cream, powdered sugar and almond extract on high speed until mixture forms firm peaks.

To serve: Spoon 2 tablespoons mascarpone filling into center of each pear. Place on dessert plates. Spoon 2 tablespoons mascarpone around bottom of pears. Drizzle 2 tablespoons slightly warm wine syrup over each pear. Garnish with candied almonds and serve immediately.

Pour ingredients into shaker and fill with ice. Shake well for 30 seconds and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a USA Red Bartlett pear wedge.