Pear Tarte Tatin

A lot of "easy" tarte tatin recipes call for using puff pastry, but I have found that crescent dough actually works better and is easier to use.  Don't turn your nose up because it's not the fancy puff pastry, it's delicious!  I would make all but the dough in advance, I would even put the dough on the pie and refrigerate until about 20 minutes before you're ready for dessert; take it out of the refrigerator and bake so it's nice and warm to serve!

Pear Tarte Tatin

Ingredients

• 4 - 5 pears, peeled, quartered and cored
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 crescent roll sheet
• 1 cup whipped cream or ice cream, for serving

Serves 4 - 6
Cook time: 30 - 45 minutes

Combine pears, lemon juice, and 1/2 cup sugar in a zip-top bag; put bag in refrigerator for pears to macerate overnight.  
Remove pears from refrigerator and drains in colander - those extra juices will make your tatin too watery, they need to be macerated to get some of the juice out.
Preheat oven to 375.  Meanwhile, add butter to 8" or 9" skillet (non-stick or cast iron would be best).  Make sure butter coats bottom and sides of skillet so the tatin slips out easily later on.  Add remaining 1/2 cup sugar to butter along with the vanilla.  Cook butter and sugar until they are syrupy and just beginning to show some color.  Neatly arrange pears, cut side up, in the pan, starting along the outer edges and coming inwards.  Continue to cook for 15 minutes or so until caramel starts to become a medium brown color.  Turn heat off and move skillet off heat.  
Remove crescent dough from refrigerator and unroll.  Gently place the sheet of dough over the pears; cut off excess dough and, using a spatula, "tuck" the dough between the pears and side of the skillet.
Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, it is done when dough is golden and crispy.  Allow tatin to set for 15 - 20 minutes.  Carefully invert the tatin onto your serving platter
Serve warm with some whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.