| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 9 hr 45 min |
| Prep: | 1 hr |
| Inactive: | 8 hr |
| Cook: | 45 min |
| Yield: | 10 servings |
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 9 hr 45 min |
| Prep: | 1 hr |
| Inactive: | 8 hr |
| Cook: | 45 min |
| Yield: | 10 servings |
Ingredients
- 6 ounces unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 ounces vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 5 to 7 tablespoons cranberry juice
- 12 ounces all-purpose flour, about 2 3/4 cups, plus extra for dusting
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 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 tapioca flour
- 2 tablespoons cranberry jam
- 1 tablespoon cranberry juice
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
Instructions
- For the crust
- Place the butter, shortening and cranberry juice into the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour salt and sugar by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add the butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until the texture looks mealy. Add the shortening and pulse another 3 to 4 times until incorporated.
- Remove the lid of the food processor and sprinkle in 5 tablespoons of the cranberry juice. Replace the lid and pulse 5 times. Add more cranberry juice as needed, and pulse again until the mixture holds together when squeezed. Weight the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
- 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, tapioca flour, jam, cranberry juice, lemon juice, salt and nutmeg.
- For assembling and baking the pie:
- 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.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 10 servings |
| Calories | 516 |
| Total Fat | 20 g |
| Saturated Fat | 9 g |
| Carbohydrates | 81 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 7 g |
| Sugar | 42 g |
| Protein | 4 g |
| Cholesterol | 37 mg |
| Sodium | 286 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 10 servings |
| Calories | 516 |
| Total Fat | 20 g |
| Saturated Fat | 9 g |
| Carbohydrates | 81 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 7 g |
| Sugar | 42 g |
| Protein | 4 g |
| Cholesterol | 37 mg |
| Sodium | 286 mg |
Reviews
I could not find cranberry jam, but this was very good without it!
use Crisco shortening, and ice cold water – 9 hrs! Ridiculous!
The crust is stellar! My mother tried it and said, “This is better than my crust, and I never thought I’d say that.”
Alton uses the same recipe with a tart pan and pie bird for his popular apple pie, the difference being the liquid; he changes it depending on the type of pie he’s baking. I just used water and it worked out fine.
As I made this crust, I was worried that I was pushing / patching the dough into the pan too much. I didn’t. The crust rolls out nice and thick and it can take a lot of in-the-pan shaping.
I skipped the glaze and used an egg wash sprinkled some sugar. It looked and tasted great.
Full 5 stars for the recipe. It’s a hearty pie and perfect in the tart pan. Pie bird is key. I’ve made it three thanksgivings now and the fourth is on deck next week.
I’ve never been able to find the cranberry jam. But Stonewall Kitchen has something called “Holiday Jam” which works great.
My oven can’t have things on the floor so I preheat the oven with the sheet pan in there to approximate it. But I’ve found the hard way that it is better to put the parchment in on the sheet pan when you put the pie in and not while you are preheating. Also, I dock the bottom crust before putting in the pie bird.
I printed this recipe when it was missing the use of lemon juice – good to see they have that fixed. But amazingly, they didn’t fix the phrase where it says to put in the apples. (This recipe is similar to Alton’s AppleJack Apple Pie.
This is a very tasty and easy to make pie. Pay attention to your time budget, mix your fruit first and then your pie! Everything gets to the prep stage at once.
We sub’d in a tart cherry jam instead of cranberry (worked great). And used sparkling cranberry juice (intended for dinner) in the pie crust.
Don’t forget to save your pear juice drippings to brush on your crust. I forgot, used an egg wash and it still tasted great.
My husband wanted me to try this pie for Thanksgiving after seeing the special that featured it. After reading all the reviews, I wasn’t sure if it would be good, but it so was. It was very easy to make and was gorgeous!! Definitely a show-stopper. I did add a little extra sugar because of other reviews, but I don’t think it was necessary. I am sure if my pears weren’t sweet it would’ve been, but mine were sweet and juicy. Also I used my favorite crust recipe instead of his. It was obvious to me to add the lime juice to the pears as soon as they were sliced to keep them from turning brown. I also couldn’t find cranberry jam so I used raspberry pomegranate jam and to carry the flavor over, I used cranberry pomegranate juice. My only slight complaint was that I think I would use about 1/2 as many cranberries, but my husband liked it as it was.
I love pie. Who doesn’t, right? When I saw Alton make this pie on his show, I was kind of surprised. I’d never thought of putting pears in a pie. So, I gave it a shot. The pie was amazing! Everyone loved it so much that it was branded best dessert at our Thanksgiving get together. It was the perfect mix of sweet and tart. Yes, the ingredients were a bit pricey, but it was worth it. In the end, you get what you pay for. I’ll take the pricey homemade pie over the cheap store bought pie that has been on the shelf a few days anytime. Thanks for the awesome recipe, Alton. Keep up the great work!
I personally am not a fan of pie at any time however when I saw this done on the food network my hubby said he would like to try it. It was a little less traditional then the typical pie so I gave it a whirl. The crust was not only easy to make but SPECTACULAR in flavor! I do not typically like the crust of a pie even more than the actually filling. Not only was this pie picture perfect and easy to make it was also a wonderful ending to our Thanksgiving meal! My family loved it and has requested it again this year. I am making it again and cannot wait to share it with the “extras” that will be in my home for our meal. Thank Alton Brown for a yummy flavored pie.
Sidenote… recipe proofreading is a must… I agree with the others these ingredients are expensive.
Foodnetwork…….Do you realize how expensive ingredients are for great recipes. Would you kindly proofread your recipes. It’s not like your cooks are filming shows everyday. There are many, many repeats. Given that, you would think the cook (some are chefs would care enough about his/her profession to be sure recipes are posted correctly.
I am going to flag this to ensure you see it as many people have posted this many times for several recipes.
I have not made this pie yet, but I thought I would mention that cranberry jam can be gotten from “The Wooden Nickel” myrtlewood store and gift shop in Port Orford, OR. I was there last week on vacation, and happened to buy cranberry jam made from locally grown cranberries. Here is the URL: http://www.oregonmyrtlewood.com/