Poached Pear and Almond Frangipane Tart Recipe

This dessert is perfect when you want to impress without spending all day in the kitchen. It’s more involved than a quick cupcake or a skillet cookie, but you don’t need professional pastry training. The dough comes together easily in a stand mixer, the frangipane blends quickly in a food processor, and poaching pears is simply simmering fruit in wine.

Once the components are ready, assemble and bake the tart, then enjoy the admiring “ooohs” and “ahhhs.” The tart is best the day it’s made, but the components—dough, frangipane, and poached pears—can be prepared ahead of time.

xo

-Rebecca

Ingredients Needed to Prepare this Recipe

The ingredient list in the recipe card is grouped for clarity—tart dough, frangipane, and poached pears—but many items are used across components. Here are the essentials in plain terms:

• Unsalted butter. An all-butter dough gives great flavor and a crisp texture.
• All-purpose flour. Unbleached is preferred.
• Granulated sugar for sweetness in the dough, frangipane, and poaching liquid.
• Baking powder and salt to balance flavor and structure.
• Heavy cream to enrich the dough.
• Bosc pears. Firm and holds shape during poaching.
• Semi-sweet white wine (about one bottle) and dry red wine (about one bottle) for poaching and color contrast.
• An orange for peel to flavor the poaching liquid.
• Vanilla and almond extracts for aromatics.
• Dry roasted, unsalted almonds and almond paste to make the frangipane.
• 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk to enrich the frangipane.

Step-by-step photos and instructions

Step #1: Make the tart dough

Chill the butter in the freezer for about 20 minutes so it is very cold but not solidly frozen. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer.

With the mixer on low, add the partially frozen butter in pieces. Mix until no piece is larger than a kidney bean.

While mixing, add the cream, then only enough ice water to bring the dough together. Be careful not to over-add water—just enough so it holds.

Shape the dough into a disk, wrap tightly, and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Keeping the dough cold preserves flaky layers.

Step #2: Prepare the wine-poached pears

Pour the red wine into one saucepan and the white wine into another. Add sugar, a pinch of salt, and strips of orange peel (orange peel goes in the red wine). Peel and slice each pear into eight pieces.

Bring each pan to a gentle boil, add the pear slices, and simmer for about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pears cool in the liquid for the best flavor and color.

Drain the pears on paper towels.

Reduce the white wine poaching liquid over medium-high heat until about ½ cup remains, then stir in vanilla. This becomes a glossy glaze for the baked tart.

Step #3: Prepare the frangipane

Frangipane (almond cream) is made from ground almonds, almond paste, sugar, butter, and eggs. It’s richer and less dense than marzipan and is used as a tart filling.

Pulse the almonds and sugar in a food processor until roughly ground with no pieces larger than a pea.

Add almond paste, butter, eggs, salt, and extracts. Process until smooth and homogenous.

Step #4: Assemble and bake the tart

Roll the chilled pastry dough and press it into a 9- or 10-inch tart pan, making sure it fits into corners. Cover and freeze for 20 minutes to keep the dough cold.

Distribute the frangipane in golf-ball sized pieces over the tart base, then press into an even layer with wet fingers.

Arrange pear slices over the frangipane in your chosen pattern—herringbone, concentric circles, or any design you prefer.

Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes, reduce to 400°F and bake 15 minutes, then reduce to 350°F and bake 20 minutes more. Remove and cool completely.

Brush the pear slices with the white wine reduction for shine and flavor, then slice and serve.

Tips for Perfect Pastry

Keep the pastry cold. Cold butter creates pockets of fat that melt in the oven, producing a light, flaky crust. If butter warms too much and blends fully into the flour, the result can be dense.

Partially freezing the butter before cutting it into the flour and working quickly when shaping the dough helps maintain those layers.

Don’t overmix. A few small butter pieces in the dough are desirable—they create flakiness as they melt during baking.

How to Bake a Tart with an Extra Crispy Crust

If you prefer a very crisp bottom, partially pre-bake (blind-bake) the crust before filling. If you skip this step, the crust will be tender but still sturdy.

Tips for Making and Storing Poached Pears

Poached pears are a highlight on their own—cooking pears in wine transforms their texture and flavor. The pears keep well when stored in their poaching liquid in the refrigerator for up to a week, so you can make them ahead.

Use Bosc pears. Their firmness helps them maintain shape while poaching. To check ripeness, press gently near the stem—slight give indicates readiness. If underripe, simmer a bit longer and test for tenderness.

What to Do with the Leftover Pear Poaching Liquid

Poaching in both red and white wine gives a pretty contrast and slightly different flavors. After poaching and removing the pears, reduce the cooking liquids into syrup. The white wine reduction is brushed on the finished tart for shine and flavor.

The leftover reductions are versatile—store them in the refrigerator and drizzle over ice cream, pancakes, cakes, or mix into cocktails. They’re intensely flavorful and a lovely way to extend the recipe’s use.

Favorite use for the sauce:

Drizzle over ice cream-filled profiteroles. The wine syrup complements the richness of the cream or ice cream and makes a dramatic dessert.

How to Arrange the Pears on this Tart

Two colors of poached pears let you create visually appealing designs. A herringbone pattern is elegant, and concentric circles can look floral. To create a herringbone, lay slices core-side down at a 90-degree angle, pressing gently into the frangipane and alternating colors. Tuck ends under previous slices as you build rows.

The pears remain sturdy after poaching, so you can lift and rearrange them if a pattern needs adjusting.

Make Ahead and Storage Instructions

The tart is best the day it’s made, but each component keeps well:

• Pastry dough: up to 2 days in the refrigerator, or frozen up to 2 months.
• Frangipane: up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator (or 1 week if prepared as noted in the recipe card), bring to room temperature before using.
• Poached pears: up to one week in their poaching liquid in the refrigerator.

With components prepared ahead, assembly and baking are quick and stress-free.

If you give this recipe a try, let me know! Rate and leave a comment to share how it turned out.

Happy baking!