Tag: fruit

hazelnut meal and pear tart

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Hazelnut Meal and Pear Tart

sweet short crust pastry ingredients;125g unsalted softened butter,1 egg,90g icing sugar,30g hazelnut meal,250g plain flour

method

Place butter,egg,sugar and hazelnut meal in an electric mixer, beat until smooth. Add the flour a little at a time, until all combined then stop mixing.turn onto floured surface and shape into a disk. Wrap in plastic film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Hazelnut Meal Tart Filling ingredients; 50g softened butter,100g caster sugar,100g hazelnut meal,2 eggs,1 tablespoon of brandy, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract,4 pears poached, halved and sliced

method

Roll out the pastry in between baking paper, this helps to keep the pastry from sticking to the rolling pin. Try to get the pastry to 4mm thickness and then use a 25cm tart tin with a removable base. Lift the pastry while on the baking paper and flip into the tin. Just press any breakages back together and smooth out. Trim the edges with a sharp knife and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Pre heat the oven to 160°C. Place butter and sugar in a kitchen mixer beat until light and fluffy, add the hazelnut meal,eggs, brandy and vanilla, beat until combined. Spoon mixture into tart shell and arrange sliced pears evenly around the tart. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the pastry and filling are golden. Serve warm with cream.

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down on the farm

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It was the most beautiful day in Melbourne yesterday, for the middle of winter.  We decided to pack up the children and head off to the Collingwood Children’s Farm for the morning. Once a month they hold a farmers market and sell everything from organically grown fruit and vegetables to wild flowers, home-made chai tea, giant hash browns, eggs, free range meat, sourdough bread even beer.  This is a fabulous market to go to especially with the kids and the dog if you have one, there’s so much room for them to run.   The farm itself grows all its own produce and the animals are hands on with the kids.  They can watch a cow being milked at 10 am,  pat sheep which are incredibly friendly, walk amongst the ducks, talk to the chickens, feed the goats and I’m sure much more.  We had a really, good, stress free time here, which is a rare thing when travelling with toddlers and babies with an added bonus of a great coffee.  If you live in Melbourne and have kids, pack up the gum boots, a change of clothes just in case and head there one weekend.. it really is a fun day out.