Salted Honey Pear Crostata

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar and salt. Sprinkle the butter over the top, toss to coat and then using a pastry blender or your hands to blend the butter into the flour mixture. Work quickly so as not to melt the butter. Work the butter until it is roughly the size of peas (some pieces bigger, some pieces smaller, but about that size). Drizzle with the chilled vodka-water mixture and give it 5-6 stirs with a spatula to mix the moisture throughout. Press the spatula into the flour and it should start to adhere and form a mass.

Lay a piece of plastic wrap on the counter and pour the crumbly dough over the top. Using your hands, quickly press and shape into a rectangle about 1 1/2 inches thick. Wrap tightly. If there are any cracks gently press down until they disappear. Set in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

To Make the Salted Honey Caramel

In a medium saucepan over medium heat add the butter. Once melted, turn the heat up just a touch stirring and watching. Look for the formation of little brown bits on the bottom of the pan and a nutty, delicious smell…this should take about 2-3 minutes. We don’t have a lot of butter in here, so it won’t take long. Take the pan off of the heat and stir in the brown sugar, honey and heavy whipping cream. Put back over medium heat and gently stir for 2 minutes more. Take off of the heat again and stir in the ginger, vanilla and sea salt. Set aside to cool a bit. *The sugar may not completely dissolved in the pan. This is fine as it will finish melting in the oven as it commingles with the pears and life will be grand.

Preheat your oven to 400F (204C) and place a rack in the center of the oven. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and heavy whipping cream, set aside.

To cut the pears, hold them stem side up on a cutting board and cut down one side of the pear, getting as close to the core as possible (without cutting into it). Repeat on the opposing side. Then thinly slice the pear halves cutting them lengthwise. Take the dough out of the freezer or fridge and place the pears cut-side down on top of the dough, leaving a 1 1/2- to 2-inch boarder. You can split up the pear halves to fill up empty spaces if need be. Drizzle the salted honey caramel evenly over the top of the pears. If the dough has warmed up, set it in the freezer or fridge for 10 minutes to chill it back up. If not, move onto the next step.