Pear Vanilla Brown Butter Bars

Adapted from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook

These bars are so sweet and rich, I halved the original recipe and cut them much smaller than the bars the bakery serves.To feed a bigger crowd, you can double this recipe and use a 9x13 pan. When doubling, use 3 whole eggs.
Zest your orange before juicing it for the jam--you'll need the zest for the brown butter filling.

Makes 12

For the crust:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

For the jam:

2 medium firm-ripe pears (I used Anjou), peeled, cored and chopped into 1/2 inch chunks (to yield about 1 1/2-2 cups cut fruit)
1/3 cup fresh orange juice (from 1 large orange)
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the brown butter filling:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest (from 1 large orange)
7 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Being by making the crust: Place the butter for the crust in a small saucepan set over high heat. Melt the butter. Once the butter is completely melted, it will bubble and sizzle. Keep swirling the pan occasionally, and listen and watch carefully--when the foam begins to subside and the sizzling suddenly, the butter will quickly turn brown and smell nutty, about 5 minutes total. Quickly pour the hot butter into a small metal pan (I use a loaf pan) and place in the freezer until the butter is solid, about 20 minutes (wipe out the saucepan with a paper towel and set is aside--you'll need it for brown butter batch #2).

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Completely line an 8x8-inch square pan with aluminum foil.

Place the confectioners' sugar, flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor (or a mixing bowl if you want to work by hand). Pulse briefly to blend the dry ingredients. When the butter is solid, scrape it out of the pan using a spoon or fork--it doesn't have to be pretty, it just has to get all out of the pan. Place the butter pieces into the food processor and pulse until a dough forms (or use a pastry butter if you're working by hand). Press the dough into the prepared pan. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake the crust until golden brown, about 18-22 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack (leave the oven at 375 degrees).

While the crust is cooling prepare the jam: Place the pear chunks, orange juice and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir to combine, and bring the mixture to a boil. Cook until the pears are very tender, about 7 minutes. Use a potato masher or fork to mash the pears into small bits (but not completely smooth). Cook until the jam is thick and any excess liquid has all but disappeared, about 7 minutes more. Stir in the vanilla extract. Transfer the jam to a separate bowl to cool.

Place the 5 tablespoons of butter for the filling into the small saucepan. Brown the butter as you did in the step for the crust. Set the brown butter aside to cool slightly. Whisk together the egg, egg yolk, sugar, orange zest, flour, salt and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually whisk in the warm brown butter until the filling is well-blended.

Pour half the brown butter filling over the cooled crust. Dollop the jam evenly over the surface of the filling. Top with the remaining filling.

Bake until the filling is a deep golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before removing the bars from the pan and cutting into squares. Store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Recipe Source: http://pieceofcakeblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/pear-vanilla-brown-butter-bars.html