This wintry French Pear and Hazelnut Frangipane Tart makes for a dainty end to any celebratory meal. A buttery, sweet pastry crust is filled with a custardy, nutty cream and firm, sweet Bosc pears for an elegantly harmonious confection that is sure to please.
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About This Recipe
This pear frangipane tart recipe is near and dear to my heart; I actually created it for my final project in Pastry School! It's made with my signature sweet pastry dough, the tart shell is akin to a nutty shortbread, with a tender, crumbly, melt-in-your mouth consistency. It is practically begging to be filled with any number of toppings; this particular combination of sweet-tart pears and hazelnut cream is an exceptionally worthy pairing.
Aside from the incredible flavor and texture this hazelnut pear tart has to offer, there are even more reasons to love it. First, this recipe is quite easy to pull off. You can make both the sweet pastry dough and the hazelnut frangipane ahead of time, making it simple to break into smaller tasks.
The tart recipe is also rather flexible. While I simply adore the combination of Bosc pears and hazelnuts, you can easily adjust based on your preferences.
Swap in a firm, sweet-tart apple variety like Pink Ladies, or use a different nut to make the frangipane, and suddenly you have a brand new, entirely unique dessert. If you’re feeling extra daring, drizzle it with some homemade crème anglaise or chocolate ganache.
Finally, since this is a dessert best served lukewarm or at room temperature, it is the perfect make-ahead recipe for a winter dinner party. This pear frangipane tart can be made up to a day in advance and kept in the fridge, so your day-of duties are kept to a minimum.
What is “frangipane?”
If you are not yet acquainted with frangipane, you are in for a big treat. Frangipane is a velvety nut cream, enhanced with just a hint of vanilla. The most widely recognized use of this rich, textural cream is in almond croissants: it acts as both the filling and topping of the tasty French pastries.
Traditionally, frangipane is made from ground almonds, butter, eggs, sugar, and a small amount of unbleached all-purpose flour, but in this case I’m switching things up and opting for buttery hazelnuts instead. Why, you ask? Because pears and hazelnuts are a match made in heaven.
Ingredients
This delightful French pear tart is made from rather humble ingredients that are more than the sum of their individual parts. Here are a few notes to consider:
- Ground Hazelnuts - You'll likely find Bob's Red Mill ground hazelnut flour in the baking aisle of your local grocery store. Rather than scouring stores for hazelnut flour, you can certainly make your own. Simply toast whole, raw hazelnuts on a baking sheet at 350F for about 7-10 minutes or until fragrant. Process in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment until you have a fine powder, stopping prior to turning it into nut butter.
- Almond Flour - Sometimes sold as “almond meal,” this ingredient adds flavor and texture to my sweet pastry dough. If you would prefer to limit your ingredient purchases, feel free to use extra ground hazelnuts in its place.
- Bread Flour - Bread flour has a higher protein content than AP flour, which helps to give this tart shell a bit of extra stability. You can substitute an equal amount of AP flour if needed.
- Demerara Sugar - This is a type of cane sugar with a fairly large grain and a pale amber color. It is a fantastic finishing sugar with a pleasant toffee flavor. The added crunch and caramelized flavor helps to bring this tart up a notch! You may substitute similarly shaped turbinado sugar (a.k.a. Sugar in the Raw). I use demerara sugar as a key ingredient for my Pear Brandy Sour cocktail - another favorite of mine!
- Pears - There are many varieties of pears available, but you want to reach for one that is firm and will hold its shape while baking. For this reason, I prefer the Bosc variety, which is widely available from September through April.
Equipment
There are a few pieces of equipment that are essential for this recipe. Here’s what I recommend you invest in:
- Tart Pan - While you can technically use a variety of pans in place of a tart pan, you won’t get the gorgeous fluted edges that I associate with the perfect tart. Feel free to opt for either a round or rectangular variety, or choose individual tart pans instead.
- Food Processor - These kitchen powerhouses are great at shredding, blending, dicing, chopping, mixing, grating, and countless other tasks (like cutting butter into flour for pie dough!). They’re also indispensable for making homemade nut flours.
- Electric Mixer - I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: do your arms a favor and invest in an electric mixer. If at all possible, I suggest a stand mixer (or hybrid hand/stand mixer) so you can multitask.
- Pie Weights - You simply cannot blind bake a pastry shell without pie weights. They don’t have to be fancy, though! Dried beans or dried rice will do just fine. Note that dried beans/rice can be used repeatedly for pie weights, but should not be eaten after being used as such.
How to Make
Even though this French Pear and Hazelnut Frangipane Tart looks fancy, it is actually quite manageable for any home cook. Here is how it’s done:
Make Hazelnut Frangipane
Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream for 3 minutes until pale and fluffy.
Add the hazelnut or almond flour in three parts while mixing, alternating with each egg until the ingredients are incorporated evenly.
Add the flour and vanilla extract - mixing to combine. Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use. Frangipane can be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for up to a month in advance.
Make Sweet Tart Dough
In a stand mixer using a paddle attachment, start by mixing sugar, butter, vanilla paste, salt, almond, and all-purpose flour, mixing until combined. Take a moment to scrape the mixing bowl and ensure that the butter mixture is uniform.
Add room temperature eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between additions.
Add bread flour, making sure to not overmix. Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap – then place in the fridge to chill before using for at least one hour.
NOTE: I tend to make my tart dough ahead of time so I throw it in the fridge until the next day. If using this method, remove your dough from the fridge 30 minutes before you plan to roll it out – you’ll find that it will be MUCH easier to work with!
Once your dough is rolled to the desired thickness, press gently into the bottom of your buttered tart pan, poking the bottom of the tart LIBERALLY with a fork, and place in the freezer to chill for 20-30 minutes.
Blind Bake Tart Shell
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the shell with aluminum foil or parchment before adding pie weights. Bake for about 15 minutes until light golden brown before pulling from the oven. After cooling for 5-10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights.
Assemble & Bake
Fill the tart shell to the halfway point with your frangipane and arrange pear slices on top. Sprinkle demerara sugar on top before placing back into the preheated oven for another 30-40 minutes.
You’re looking for the frangipane to be completely set before removing it from the oven and letting it cool. If the edges of the tart are browning too quickly, you can lightly cover them with a ring of foil.
Transfer the tart to a rack to cool until lukewarm or room temperature before removing the sides of the tart pan. To serve, I like sprinkling powdered sugar over the top!
Expert Tips
- Don’t overprocess your nuts. Make sure not to grind them for too long, or your hazelnut flour could become nut butter instead! If this happens, don’t toss the hazelnut butter even though it won’t work in the frangipane; add some cacao powder or melted chocolate for a homemade nutella that’ll bring the house down. Happy accident? I think so. Now, try again!
- Work ahead. Both the sweet pastry dough and the frangipane are excellent candidates for making ahead of time. They will both last in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to 2 months. You can also prep the tart shell in the tart pan and freeze it for an even easier assembly the next day.
- Freeze your tart shell. I know it sounds a bit fussy - chilling the dough after making it, and then again after pressing it into the tin - but the added time is non-negotiable. If you fail to properly freeze the tart shell, it is likely to shrink during baking.
- If the edges of the tart are browning too quickly, you can lightly cover them with a ring of foil - just be sure to cook the filling all the way through.
Frequently Asked Questions
Don’t fret! This pear tart will taste quite delicious if you opt to use ground almonds in your frangipane instead.
Use more hazelnuts in the short pastry crust instead! Just remember to stop grinding them when they reach a fine powder; if you keep processing them, they will turn into hazelnut butter instead of flour.
I personally prefer Bosc pears (sometimes called Kaiser pears) for baking and poaching because their firm, sweet flesh retains its shape under exposure to heat. Anjou or Concorde pears are also fine options. Be sure to choose smooth, unblemished fruits that are mildly fragrant. Ripe baking pears should yield to gentle pressure from your thumb, but should not feel soft. If your pears are underripe, place them in a plastic or paper bag with a banana for a day or two - the ethylene gas from the banana will speed up the ripening process. If your pears are overripe, they might not be great for this pear tart, but they would be perfect for turning into a sauce or syrup.
Nope! I kind of enjoy the flecked aesthetic if you keep them, but you are welcome to remove them if you prefer. To do so, toast your hazelnuts in the oven until lightly golden and fragrant, then pour into a clean tea towel. Rub the towel over the nuts and remove as many skins as possible.
Related Recipes
As always, I love seeing your creations and hearing from you! If you try making this Pear Tart with Hazelnut Frangipane, please leave a review or share your creation with me on social media! You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest - and for more delicious recipes sent straight to your inbox, sign up for my newsletter!
Pear Tart with Hazelnut Frangipane
Equipment
- Hand or Stand Mixer
- Plastic Wrap
- Rolling Pin
- Tart Pan
- Pie Weights/Baking Rice or Beans
- Cooling Rack
Ingredients
Hazelnut Frangipane
- ½ Cup (115 g) Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
- ½ Cup & 1 Tbsp (115 g) Granulated Sugar
- 1 Cup (112 g) Ground Hazelnuts
- 3 Eggs, large, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Tart Dough
- 1 ¼ Cups (150 g) Powdered Sugar
- ¾ Cup + 2 Tbsp (200 g) Unsalted Butter , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon (1 ) Vanilla Paste, or vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ Cup (56 g) Almond flour
- ¾ Cup (100 g) All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Eggs, large, room temperature
- 2 ¼ Cups (280 g) Bread Flour
To Finish
- 2 Bosc Pears , sliced thinly
- 2 tablespoon Demerara Sugar
- Powdered Sugar and Chopped Hazelnuts for Garnish
Instructions
Frangipane
- Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream for 3 minutes until pale and fluffy.½ Cup Unsalted Butter, ½ Cup & 1 tablespoon Granulated Sugar
- Add the hazelnut or almond flour in three parts while mixing, alternating with each egg until the ingredients are incorporated evenly.1 Cup Ground Hazelnuts, 3 Eggs
- Add the flour and vanilla extract - mixing to combine. Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use.1 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour, 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Tart Dough
- In a stand mixer using a paddle attachment, start by mixing sugar, butter, vanilla paste, salt, almond, and all-purpose flour, mixing until combined. Take a moment to scrape the mixing bowl¾ Cup + 2 tablespoon Unsalted Butter, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Paste, ½ teaspoon Salt, 1 ¼ Cups Powdered Sugar, ½ Cup Almond flour, ¾ Cup All-Purpose Flour
- Add room temperature eggs one at a time, mixing between additions2 Eggs
- Add bread flour, making sure to not overmix2 ¼ Cups Bread Flour
- Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap – then place in the fridge to chill before using for at least 30 minutes.
- I tend to make my tart dough ahead of time so I throw it in the fridge until the next day. If using this method, remove your dough from the fridge 30 minutes before you plan to roll it out – you’ll find that it will be MUCH easier to work with!
- Once your dough is rolled to the desired thickness, press gently into the bottom of your buttered tart pan, poking the bottom of the tart LIBERALLY with a fork, and place in the freezer to chill for about 15 minutes. This is essential – your tart shells are less likely to shrink while baking if you take the time to freeze your shells.
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Line the shell with aluminum foil and baking rice/beans/pie weights to further prevent the dough from puffing up. Bake for about 15 minutes until light golden brown before pulling from the oven. After cooling for 5-10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights.
- Fill tart shell to the ½ way point with your frangipane and arrange pear slices on top. Sprinkle demerara sugar on top before placing back into the preheated oven for another 30-40 minutes. You’re looking for the frangipane to be completely set before removing it from the oven and letting it cool. If the edges of the tart are browning too quickly, you can lightly cover them with a ring of foil.2 Bosc Pears, 2 tablespoon Demerara Sugar
- Transfer the tart to a rack to cool until lukewarm or room temperature before removing the sides of the tart pan. To serve, I like sprinkling powdered sugar over the top! If the edges of the tart are gaining color too quickly, you can lightly cover them with a ring of foil - be sure to cook the filling through completely. Transfer the tart to a rack to cool until lukewarm or room temperature before removing the sides of the tart pan.Powdered Sugar and Chopped Hazelnuts for Garnish
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