If you have a sweet tooth and are looking to indulge in a delicious, honey-drizzled dessert, this tasty pear tart is the perfect dish for you! It may take a little bit more time to prepare compared to previous “Campus is Cookin’” recipes, but the slow melt of the rich tart filling is worth the extra effort.
For the crust, take a piece of thick, white Italian bread from the deli bar on the second floor of Paresky Commons. A little bit of butter can add a little flavor to the bread, but is not crucial to the recipe. Place the piece of bread in the panini press for around 15 seconds until the bread appears golden in color and completely compressed. If you want to make the tart during breakfast when the panini makers are unavailable, you can lightly toast the bread and press it flat between two clean Paresky plates.
Next, head downstairs to make the tart’s creamy filling. Scoop in two large spoonfuls of cream cheese in a small bowl and heat in the microwave for ten seconds to allow the cheese to soften. Mix in the softened cream cheese, a spoonful of vanilla yogurt with a generous squirt of honey, a little bit of cinnamon and nutmeg and an optional spoon of brown sugar, all of which can be found at the tea station. Set the filling aside.
Select a pear from the fruit baskets that are usually located next to the hearth. If the pears are not ripe enough to eat, after slicing the pear into small wedges, microwave them for 20 seconds or until soft enough to eat.
To complete your mouth-watering crunchy pear tart, spread the cream cheese filling onto the crust until you have a thick, creamy layer. Lay the pear slices on top in an overlapping manner to make sure you cover all of the crust. To top it off, generously drizzle honey on top of the wedges as a sweet and tart glaze. You can never go wrong with a warm, homemade dessert tart!
