Description
A fragrant Pear & Cardamom Tart featuring a crisp sweet shortcrust pastry base filled with aromatic cardamom frangipane and topped with tender sliced pears. This elegant dessert combines the warmth of cardamom with the natural sweetness of pears and toasted almonds, finished with a drizzle of honey for a perfect balance of flavors.
Ingredients
Scale
Pastry
- 500g sweet shortcrust pastry
- Plain flour, for dusting
Filling
- 4 small ripe pears
- Squeeze lemon juice
- Drizzle of honey
- 200g butter, softened
- 200g caster sugar
- 140g ground almonds
- 100g self-raising flour
- 50g toasted flaked almonds, plus a few extra for sprinkling
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Prepare the pastry shell: Roll out the sweet shortcrust pastry on a lightly floured surface until large enough to line an 18 x 28cm tart tin or a 23cm round tart tin. Carefully lift the pastry into the tin, allowing any excess to hang over the edges. Prick the base with a fork, place the tin on a baking sheet, and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
- Blind bake the pastry: Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line the chilled pastry with baking parchment and fill with baking beans or ceramic beads to prevent rising. Bake for 15 minutes. Then remove the beans and parchment and bake for another 10 minutes until the pastry base turns crisp and biscuit-like. Reduce the oven temperature to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Trim any excess pastry edges for a neat finish.
- Make the cardamom frangipane: In a mixing bowl, beat together softened butter, caster sugar, ground almonds, self-raising flour, toasted flaked almonds, ground cardamom, and eggs using an electric whisk until smooth and creamy. This mixture will form the aromatic almond filling.
- Prepare and arrange the pears: Peel, halve, and core the pears. Use a melon baller or small spoon to remove the core if needed. Brush the pear halves lightly with lemon juice to prevent browning. Dollop the frangipane filling into the blind-baked tart shell and spread evenly. Arrange the pear halves on top, gently pressing them into the filling. Scatter a few extra flaked almonds over the surface for crunch and decoration.
- Bake the tart: Place the tart in the oven and bake at 160C/140C fan/gas 3 for 50 minutes or until the filling is risen, firm to the touch, and golden brown.
- Serve: Allow the tart to cool slightly if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature, drizzled with a little honey to add a glossy, sweet finish.
Notes
- To get the best flavor from cardamom, crush the pods with a rolling pin to release the seeds, then finely grind them before use.
- Blind-baking the pastry ensures a crisp base that won’t go soggy under the moist filling.
- Use ripe but firm pears for the best texture that holds shape during baking.
- This tart can be served warm with cream or vanilla ice cream, or cold as a delightful afternoon treat.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes (plus 30 minutes chilling)
- Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: European
Keywords: pear tart, cardamom tart, frangipane tart, almond tart, sweet shortcrust pastry dessert
