Lattice Topped Pear Slab Pie Recipes

Steps:

• In a small bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, sugar and salt until blended. Gradually beat in flour. Divide dough in 2 portions so that 1 portion is slightly larger than the other. Shape each into a rectangle; wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight., Preheat oven to 350°. For filling, in a large bowl, combine sugar, flour and lemon zest. Add pears and candied fruit; toss to coat., On a lightly floured surface, roll out larger portion of dough into an 18x13-in. rectangle. Transfer to a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of pan; add filling., Roll out remaining dough to a 1/8-in.-thick rectangle; cut into 1/2-in.-wide strips. Arrange over filling in a lattice pattern. Trim and seal strips to edge of bottom pastry. Brush pastry with milk; sprinkle with coarse sugar., Bake 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• For the pear and fig filling: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• Combine the pears, fig preserves, cornstarch, cinnamon and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
• For the apple cranberry filling: Place a large nonstick pot over medium heat. Add the apples, frozen cranberries, sugar and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring aggressively to burst the cranberries as they soften, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk the cranberry juice and cornstarch together in a small bowl to form a slurry. Pour the slurry into the fruit and stir to combine, then cook until a thick sauce has formed, 1 minute more. Turn off the heat and set aside.
• For the blueberry filling: Combine the blueberries, honey, cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
• For the pie: On a lightly floured surface, stack 3 rounds of pie dough, then roll out to a 20-by-15-inch rectangle. Place the rectangle on one of the parchment lined baking sheets. Use scissors to trim to a 1-inch overhang on all 4 sides and save any excess dough for later use. Place in the fridge to firm up for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stack the remaining 3 rounds of dough, then roll out to an 18-by-13-inch rectangle. Use a pizza cutter or knife to slice the rectangle lengthwise into twelve 1-inch-wide strips. Place the strips on the remaining lined baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator for 10 minutes, or until it is time to create the lattice.
• Remove the bottom crust from the refrigerator and prick in several places with the tines of a fork. Pour the blueberry filling in one corner and spread diagonally to fill a third of the pan (the fruit layers should not have a perfect edge or stopping point). Next, pour the apple cranberry filling in the middle and spread diagonally to fill another third of the pan. Finally, pour the pear and fig filling in the remaining third of the pan.
• Using a basket weave method, create a diagonal lattice on top of the pie with the remaining dough strips: Arrange 6 strips down diagonally across the pie, leaving about 2 inches between each dough strip. Fold back every other strip and place a strip down perpendicularly. Unfold the strips over them. Repeat this process with the remaining 5 strips, alternating the strips that are lifted to create a woven pattern. Press the end of each dough strip along the rim of the baking sheet and trim off any excess. Use your fingertips or the tines of a fork to crimp the crust of the pie along the rim of the pan. Brush the lattice (but not the edges) with the beaten egg.
• Bake until the filling is bubbling and the crust is golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool completely before slicing.

Steps:

• On a lightly floured work surface, roll 1 disk of dough to 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Trim edges flush with rim. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• On a piece of lightly floured parchment paper, roll out remaining disk of dough to 1/8 inch thick. Top with an inverted 9-inch pie plate or a cake ring, and gently press to make a light indentation (this will be your guide for cutting the lattice to fit the pie). Using a 3/4-inch square cutter, cut a lattice pattern out of the round, leaving at least 1/2 inch between cutouts and edge of round. Transfer squares to a parchment-lined baking sheet. To make partial squares where the lattice meets the rounded edge, make a very light indentation with the cutter, then cut out the portion of the square that is inside the round with a knife. Using a paring knife or a pizza cutter, cut out the round, leaving an additional 1/2 inch of dough beyond the marked circle. Reroll scraps, and cut out as many additional squares as possible. Transfer parchment with the lattice top to a baking sheet. Refrigerate lattice top and squares for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with racks in middle and lower positions. Peel, halve, and core pears. Very thinly slice 3 pears lengthwise, and cut remaining 2 pears into 8 wedges each.
• Toss together pears, cranberries, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl. Using the tip of a paring knife, scrape vanilla seeds over pear mixture, and toss until seeds have been evenly incorporated. Pour filling into piecrust, gently pressing to make it as level as possible. Dot filling with butter.
• To make egg wash, whisk together egg yolk and cream in a small bowl. Lightly brush edge of piecrust with egg wash. Remove lattice crust and squares from refrigerator. Gently place another baking sheet on top of lattice, and carefully invert. Slide lattice on top of filling, and remove parchment. Gently press edges of crust to seal, trimming edges of lattice if necessary.
• Lightly brush lattice with egg wash. Arrange dough squares around edge of pie, overlapping them slightly. Lightly brush top of each square with egg wash as you work to help them adhere.
• Place a foil-lined baking sheet on lower oven rack to catch any juices. Place pie on middle rack, and bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling gently, 90 to 100 minutes. Tent with foil if crust browns too quickly. Let pie cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat preserves in a saucepan over medium heat until warm. Puree in a food processor until smooth. Press through a fine sieve into a bowl or another saucepan, and reheat if necessary. Brush warm pie with a generous amount of warm apricot glaze. Let cool completely on rack.