Pear & Almond Tart
A four-component French pear and almond tart finished with a blow torch – assembled cold, served the same day.
Pear & Almond Tart (Tarte Bourdaloue)
A classic French pear and almond tart built across four components – pâte sablée shell, frangipane, crème pâtissière, and poached pears finished with a blow torch.
Equipment
- 1 Food processor
- 1 saucepan
- 2 Piping bag
- 1 blow torch optional
- 6 8cm tart rings
- 1 Rolling Pin
- baking weights for blind baking
- 1 fork
- 1 pairing knife
Ingredients
Vanilla Custard (Crème Pâtissière)
- 250 ml full cream milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 50 g caster sugar
- 20 g cornflour
- 20 g unsalted butter cold, cubed
- 5 ml vanilla extract
Poached Pears
- 500 ml water enough to cover pears
- 200 g caster sugar
- 3 large pears firm but ripe, peeled and halved
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1 cinnamon stick
Pâte Sablée
- 120 g plain flour
- 60 g icing sugar
- 75 g unsalted butter cold, cubed
- 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 1 pinch salt
- 10 g cold water only if dough remains too crumbly after adding yolk
Egg Wash
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp full cream milk
Almond Cream (Frangipane)
- 50 g unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 50 g caster sugar
- 50 g almond meal
- 1 egg room temperature
- 5 ml vanilla extract
Assembly
- 20 g almond slivers
- 2 tsp cinnamon powder for dusting
Instructions
Vanilla Custard (Crème Pâtissière)
- Whisk egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl until smooth and pale.
- Add cornflour in two parts and whisk until smooth
- Heat milk in a saucepan over medium heat until just simmering.
- Pour half the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking constantly to temper.
- Pour the rest of the hot milk and whisk.
- Return the entire mixture to the saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat, whisking continuously, until the custard thickens and begins to bubble.
- Remove from heat and whisk in the cold cubed butter and vanilla extract until glossy and fully incorporated.
- Transfer to a bowl through a fine mesh strainer, and press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin forming.
- Chill completely in the fridge for 3 hours before using.
Important that you continue whisking whilst heat is on to ensure the mixture doesn't clump.
Poached Pears
- Combine water, sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon stick in a pot and bring to a simmer on low-medium heat.
- Add the peeled pear halves and poach for 15 minutes, or until tender but still holding their shape.
- Remove pears and drain thoroughly on paper towels.
- Once fully cooled, slice each pear half crosswise into thin, even slices, keeping them connected at the base to fan.
Pâte Sablée
- Place flour, icing sugar, salt, and cold cubed butter into a stand mixer and mix until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add the room temperature egg yolk and mix until the dough begins to clump together.
- Turn the dough out onto a bench and knead lightly into a disc.
- Roll the chilled dough between a folded sheet of baking paper (approximately 40cm) to 3mm thickness.
- Place the 3mm thick dough sheets into the freezer for 5 minutes until firm.
- Using the tart rings, press and cut out the tart bases, keeping them in the individual tart rings and placing them on baking paper cut out to cover the base.
- Place the tart bases in the freezer.
- With the remaining dough, roll out to form a rectangle approximately 30cm length and 15cm width and 3mm thick.
- Place the dough sheet in the freezer for 5 minutes.
- Take the dough sheet and cut strips 2cm wide. This will form the edges of the tarts.
- Each strip should be placed around the tart rings, ensuring the edges connect to the base.
- Trim the edges flush with the top of each tart ring.
- Prick the base all over with a fork to prevent it from puffing during baking. This is known as docking the base.
- Place the tart back in the freezer for an additional 5 minutes.
- Line the tarts with baking paper and baking weights.
- Blind bake at 170°C for 15 minutes.
- Remove the baking weights and brush the interior and exterior of each shell with egg wash.
- Return to the oven for a further 5 minutes until golden and crisp.
Add the cold water one small splash at a time only if the dough remains too crumbly to come together.
Continue to use baking paper to help form an even thickness on the dough sheets.
Continue to place the tarts back into the freezer if the dough becomes too soft.
Almond Cream (Frangipane)
- Cream the softened butter and caster sugar together until pale and fluffy.
- Add the room temperature egg and vanilla extract and whisk until the mixture is fully emulsified with no visible butter streaks.
- Fold in the almond meal until the mixture is smooth and uniform.
- Pipe a thin layer of frangipane (5mm to 1cm deep) into the par-baked tart shells.
- Bake at 170°C for 12 minutes until the frangipane is set and lightly golden.
- Allow the shells to cool completely before proceeding – do not rush this step.
If your egg is cold, the butter will seize and the mixture will split – room temperature is not optional here.
Assembly
- Whisk the chilled crème pâtissière to aerate before filling piping bag and piping onto each cooled tart shell over the set frangipane layer.
- Optional: Using a blowtorch, torch the edges and surface of the pear fans until caramelise and lightly charred.
- Sprinkle some almond slivers on top of the crème pâtissière.
- Place the sliced pear fans carefully on top of the crème pâtissière (custard), pressing gently.
- Place the shaped pear fan carefully on top of the custard, pressing gently to adhere.
- Optional: dust with cinnamon powder.
Notes
Storage
Store assembled tarts in the fridge and consume within 2 days. The pastry will soften over time once filled, so they are best eaten on the day of assembly. Components can be made ahead and stored separately: custard for up to 3 days, poached pears for up to 5 days in their syrup, and blind-baked shells at room temperature for up to 2 days.Key pitfalls:
- Do not assemble the tarts until the shells are completely cold. Residual heat will melt the custard and turn the frangipane layer soggy.
- The egg for the frangipane must be at room temperature. A cold egg will cause the butter to seize and the mixture to split, and there is no clean way to recover it.
- Drain the poached pears thoroughly before slicing. Excess moisture will pool on top of the custard and soften the shell from inside.
- If the custard is too firm after chilling, whisk it vigorously before piping to restore a smooth, pipeable consistency – do not add liquid.
- If the sablée is too brittle to line the moulds straight from the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before handling. Do not let it get warm.
- Blind bake properly – an under-baked shell will not hold up against the moisture of the custard and pear.
