Honeyed Cream Cheese Pear Pie Recipe

Name: Honeyed Cream Cheese Pear Pie Recipe
Yield: 8 Servings
Ingredients: CRUST; Double crust; 1 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Cardamom; CHEESE LAYER; 1 (8 oz.) pkg. Neufchatel cheese (lighter cream cheese); 2 Tbsp. lemon juice; 1/2 tsp. Spice Islands® Lemon Peel; 1/4 C. plus 2 Tbsp. powdered sugar; FILLING; 1/2 C. honey; 3 Tbsp. lemon juice; 1/2 C. raisins; 1 tsp. grated lemon peel; 5 medium or 4 large firm, peeled, D’Anjou or Bartlett pears; 1/2 C. sugar; 6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour; 3/4 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Ginger; 1/4 tsp. salt

Cook Time: 1 Hr

Yield: 8 Servings

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CRUST
Double crust
1 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Cardamom
CHEESE LAYER
1 (8 oz.) pkg. Neufchatel cheese (lighter cream cheese)
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
¹/₂ tsp. Spice Islands® Lemon Peel
¹/₄ C. plus 2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
FILLING
¹/₂ C. honey
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
¹/₂ C. raisins
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
5 medium or 4 large firm, peeled, D’Anjou or Bartlett pears
¹/₂ C. sugar
6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
³/₄ tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Ginger
¹/₄ tsp. salt

Directions

PREPARE recipe for double crust pie, adding cardamom to flour mixture if using, using a 9-inch pie plate. Roll out dough for bottom crust and place in pie plate according to recipe directions.
HEAT oven to 425ºF.
BEAT Neufchatel cheese at low speed of electric mixer until fluffy and smooth. Add 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, ¹/₂ tsp. lemon peel and powdered sugar. Beat at low speed until blended. Cover. Refrigerate.
COMBINE honey and 3 Tbsp. lemon juice in small saucepan. Beat with fork until blended. Add raisins and 1 tsp. lemon peel. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low. Cover. Simmer 10 minutes.
PLACE pears in large bowl. Combine sugar, flour, ginger and salt. Add to pears. Toss to mix. Pour honey mixture over pears. Toss to mix.
SPREAD cheese layer in unbaked pie crust. Spoon filling into pie crust. Moisten pastry edge with water.
ROLL out dough for top crust, place onto filled pie and finish edges according to pie crust recipe directions. Cut slits in top crust or prick with fork to vent steam.
BAKE at 425ºF 15 minutes. REDUCE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 350ºF. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until filling in center is bubbly and crust is golden brown. Cover edge with foil, if necessary, to prevent overbrowning. Cool to room temperature before serving.