Pear And Almond Tart

Of all the puddings I pull out for dinner parties this pear and almond tart might be my favourite. I love the chewy sweetness of almond frangipane against soft cooked fruit. In the warmer months I make this with apricots, but in Autumn I make it with pears. I cannot stress how vital it is that you grind your own almonds when making the frangipane. Ready ground almonds lack both flavour and texture and the coarseness of crumb is what makes the frangipane in this tart so good. I like to use Williams pears for this. They are soft and juicy and not too grainy but I have used conference pears in the past too. Just ensure they are ripe.

INGREDIENTS

| Serves – makes 8-10 slices |

220 plain flour
20g icing sugar
pinch of fine sea salt
130g cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1-2 tsp ice cold water
For the frangipane
200g unsalted butter, at room temperature
200g caster sugar
200g blanched almonds
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3-4 ripe Williams pears

METHOD

For the pastry place the flour, icing sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the beaten egg and pulse just until the dough begins to come together. Add a little cold water if needed (start with just 1 tsp). Gather the dough and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in clingfilm or reusable wrap and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
Wipe down the bowl of the food processor and pulse the almonds until they resemble breadcrumbs.
In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugar using an electric whisk. Beat in the eggs then fold in the almonds. Place the frangipane in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour.
Lightly dust a surface with flour and roll the pastry until it is about the thickness of a one pound coin. Line a loose bottomed fluted tart dish (23cm wide and 4cm deep) with the pastry. Trim the edges and return the lined tart dish to the fridge to chill for a further 30 mins whilst you preheat the oven and prepare the pears.
Preheat a large baking tray in the middle of the oven and preheat to 180°C degrees fan setting.
Peel, core and halve the pears.
Spoon the frangipane mixture into the chilled pastry case. Level the top and use the back of a spoon to create wells in which to place the pears, taking care to leave enough room between to allow the frangipane mixture to rise. Arrange the pear halves, cut side down on the filling.
Bake for about 50–60 minutes on the preheated tray until the almond filling and pastry are golden brown. If the frangipane is browning too much cover loosely with foil.
Allow the tart to cool, transfer onto a serving plate and dust with icing sugar. Serve the pear and almond tart with creme fraiche or double cream.