FRIDAY NIGHT DINNER (or is it dessert?)--caramelized pear and roquefort tart

     Do you ever question if what you are eating is dinner or dessert?  That was our dilemma with the Caramelized Pear and Roquefort tart I made.  The duo of sweet & savory in this tart allowed it to go either way. 

  I paired the tart with a salad of greens and a very vinegary shallot vinaigrette.  This combination of contrasts was, in my mind at least, perfect.   I poured myself a glass of Argentinian PASCUAL TOSO Malbec, and certainly had a smile on my face while savoring each and every bite.  My husband, on the other hand, thought it a bit strange eating this tart for dinner.  He chose instead, to eat something else I had stored in the refrigerator and saved the pear tart for dessert.  Whatever....  I think he really missed out on one great dinner.

                          Caramelized Pear and Roquefort Tart
                            from The New York Times Magazine, December 1996

Crust:
• 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 egg yolk, beaten with 4 teaspoons of water
Filling:
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 7 to 8 medium-size firm pears, peeled, halved and cored
• 3 ounces Roquefort cheese
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 cup port
1.  To make the crust, put the walnuts in a food processor and pulse until ground (I add a some of the flour to the walnuts while processing. This helps to avoid the walnuts becoming a paste).  Add the flour, sugar and salt and pulse just to combine.  Add the butter and pulse until most of the butter is incorporated into the flour.  Add the yolk mixture and pulse until the dough begins to come together.  Gather the dough into a ball, flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill.
2.  To make the filling, melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Add half the pears to the skillet and sauté until browned on both sides, about 8 minutes.  Remove the pears from the skillet and repeat with the remaining pears.  Set aside.
3.  Preheat the oven to 350˚F.  Roll out the dough between large sheets of plastic wrap and fit it into a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.  (This is a delicate tart dough.  If you begin having trouble with it, just stick it back in the refrigerator to chill.  You may end up with breaks and cracks in the dough, but just press scrap pieces of the dough into them and it will be fine).  Cover with aluminum foil and fill with dried beans or rice.  Bake for 20 minutes.  remove the paper and weights and bake the crust until it is golden, about 7 to 10 minutes more.
4.  Arrange the pear halves in a circle over the dough, core side down and wider end toward the edge of the pan.  Fill in the center with more pears.  Crumble the cheese over and around the pears.
5.  Whisk together the half-and-half, sugar, egg yolks and flour.  Pour over the pears.  Bake until the custard is set, about 45 minutes.
6.  Meanwhile, simmer the port in a small saucepan until it is reduced to a syrup.  While the tart is still warm and just before serving, brush the port over the pears.  Cut into wedges and serve.