Salted Caramel Pear Cream Pie

Today is one of those days when I don’t have a whole lot to say.
It’s cloudy and rainy and all I can seem to do for myself and for my own wellbeing is bake..meditate…read…and yoga. My saving graces – not necessarily in that order.

I wanted to bake pie. A pear pie. A salted pear pie. A salted caramel pear pie – with cream.

And so I did!

Salted Caramel Pear Cream Pie.

Salted Caramel Pear Cream Pie

1 Basic Pie Crust recipe*
4 graham cracker squares
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
6 oz. Salted Caramel Sauce**
2 ripe pears, halved and thinly sliced

*Basic Pie Crust:
8 Tbs. ice cold butter, cubed into 1/2″ squares
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 large egg
1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
1 pinch salt
2-3 Tbs. ice cold water

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Using your fingers, toss the butter cubes in the flour to coat. Flatten and press to immerse in the flour – handling as little as possible. Stir in the egg and vinegar (and salt) with your fingers and add a little water…a touch at a time…until the texture is just right for flaky dough. Remember, the more you touch it, the tougher it will be.
Form into a ball and place between two layers of parchment to roll out into a disc.
Carefully lay the pie crust disc into a pie plate, folding under the edges and fluting the sides for a decorative effect. (You can use a food processor to create the same effect if you don’t want to use your hands).
Fill with pie beans and bake for about 30 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove from the oven, allow to cool, and discard (or save) the beans.

**Salted Caramel Sauce:

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup half-and-half

4 Tbs. butter

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 Tbs. vanilla extract

Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter, and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar.

Combine the cream cheese and 6 oz. of Salted Caramel Sauce in the bowl of the food processor and whir until smooth.
Fill the cooled pie crust with the Salted Caramel Cream and refrigerate for several hours.

Once chilled, decorate the top of the pie with sliced pears. Consume immediately, before the pears begin to oxidize!