Poached Pear and Chocolate Almond Tart
Inspired by techniques from NYT Cooking.
Tender poached pears baked into a chocolate and almond filling in a crisp pastry case.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
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Equipment
- food processor or mixing bowl
- cling film
- rolling pin
- 23 cm loose-based fluted tart tin
- baking paper
- baking beans
- baking tray
- medium saucepan
- slotted spoon
- kitchen paper
- heatproof bowl
- wooden spoon
- wire rack
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 471 kcal |
| Protein | 7.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 51.1 g |
| of which sugars | 23.6 g |
| of which free sugars | 15.3 g |
| Fat | 27.4 g |
| of which saturates | 14.1 g |
| Fibre | 5.5 g |
| Salt | 0.25 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.6 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
Metric · 8 servings
Pastry case
- 170 g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
- 30 g icing sugar
- 1.5 g fine sea salt or table salt about ¼ tsp
- 110 g cold unsalted butter, diced
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tbsp iced water
Poached pears
- 1 l water
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 4 ripe but firm pears, peeled, halved and cored
- 100 g caster sugar, for poaching
Chocolate almond filling
- 115 g dark chocolate (60-70% cocoa), chopped check the label for milk and soya
- 40 g soft unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 60 g ground almonds, divided
- 25 g plain flour
- 50 g caster sugar
- 1
Pastry. rub the flour, icing sugar, salt and butter to crumbs, then mix in the yolk and iced water until it holds. Chill the wrapped disc 30 min, roll it out, line the tin and freeze 20 min.
- 2
Blind bake. heat the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan). Bake with paper and beans for 20 min, then 8 min uncovered until dry and pale gold. Turn the oven down to 180 °C (160 °C fan).
- 3
Poach. put the water and lemon juice in the saucepan and add each pear half as you prepare it. Add the 100 g sugar, bring to a gentle simmer and cook about 10 min, until just tender. Drain well on kitchen paper. The pears should yield to a knife but still hold their shape.
- 4
Chocolate mix. melt the chocolate over hot water or in short microwave bursts. Beat in the butter in pieces, then the eggs one at a time. Stir in 40 g of the ground almonds with the flour and the 50 g sugar.
- 5
Assemble. scatter the remaining 20 g almonds over the pastry. Slice each pear half into 4 and lay the slices close together, then spread the chocolate mixture over and between them. Draining the pears well keeps the pastry from going soggy.
- 6
Bake. bake 30 min, until the filling has puffed and set. Serve warm or at room temperature, with softly whipped cream if you like.
Storage
Keep covered at room temperature for up to 1 day, or in the fridge for 3 days. Warm slices gently before serving.
