Vanilla and pear frangipane tart is definitely a mouthful to say but making it couldn't be any easier. It is so absolutely delicious!
The inspiration for this nut free version of the traditional French Frangipane is because I just ran out of almond meal and I wanted to improvise and try something new. I am certainly glad I did because I think I may like it even more than the traditional version made with almond meal.
If you are not familiar with frangipane, it is a mixture of sugar, almond meal, usually some almond extract and egg. That is spooned over your tart base and topped with the fruit of your choice.
Since this version is nut free, I use a combination of flour and ground quick cooking oats with the butter, sugar and egg and it works perfectly. I omitted the almond extract and used vanilla instead. See my section about frangipane below if you want to make the traditional frangipane.
This vanilla is tied in to the flavors of the glaze as well so it all works beautifully together.
This pear and vanilla frangipane tart uses store bought puff pastry so it is really easy and more about combining ingredients and a few steps that you need to do to make the presentation look beautiful. If you are always looking for more ways to use puff pastry and wonder what to make with puff pastry that you have lying around then this is the perfect recipe for you.
The Pears for this Frangipane:
You can use any pears you have access to for this recipe. I bought mine from a local farmers market and I believe they were comice pears but they didn't say on the sign and I forgot to ask when I was buying them.
For the presentation, even though this is a very simple recipe, I though it would be nice to showcase the shapes of the pears by slicing the pears into thin strips. There is no peeling or coring of the pears.
You will just wash them and cut. As you begin to make your way to the center of the pear, the cut shapes start to look more beautiful. If your slices have a seed or two in them, just gently remove the seed and leave the cavity the seed came from intact.
It all plays into a more rustic presentation!
The Frangipane:
Frangipane is a delicious layer of what can almost be described as a dry custard layer that sits either over puff pastry or a shortbread crust.
Now I always like to make my recipes easy by using what most people have on hand in their home. This recipe does not use almond meal and instead uses a mix of oats and all purpose flour. If you want the traditional frangipane layer then go ahead and substitute almond flour for this part.
When you are making the frangipane, you will want to work with a food processor since it is better than a blender at blending up small amounts.
You will want to start with your quick cooking oats and flour and get that ground as finely as possible. Don't worry if there are some oat pieces visible.
After you do this just add the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla and blitz until a thick creamy and smooth mixture forms.
Assembling with the Puff Pastry:
Once you have finished slicing your pears and making the frangipane it is about assembling. You will want to roll your store bought puff pastry into a rectangle about 14x11 or about. Then you will spread your frangipane leaving about ½ inch border on the puff pastry.
Once you do this you start adding your pears. I like to add them at different angles and some upside down and some right side up.
The glaze:
Once the tart is in the oven, you can prepare your glaze of honey and vanilla. You will need to gently heat the two in a small sauce pan so it is thin and easy to brush on. The glaze will be brushed on about 10 minutes before the tart is done baking.
The glaze is important for two reasons. First it adds extra flavor. Second, it add a beautiful shine and golden color to the tart.
Once it is done baking you can serve it right away. It is great on it's own or with some ice cream.
If you would like more Fall baking recipes you might like:
Nut Free Vanilla and Pear Frangipane Tart
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
- 1 package of puff pastry thawed in the refrigerator
- 2 pears any variety
Nut Free Frangipane
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup quick cooking oats
- 4 tbsp room temperature butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
The glaze
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pre heat your oven to 375 degrees
- Take your pears and slice them into ¼ inch strips from the top to the bottom. Do not peel your pears.
- Continue slicing the pears all the way to the center core of the pear. If seeds are in your slices just gently remove them.
- Set your sliced pears aside.
- Grab a food processor.
- Add your flour and oats and blitz until it makes a smooth mixture and most of the oats are ground up.
- Now add your sugar, butter, egg and vanilla and mix on medium speed until it forms a creamy mixture.
- Set your frangipane aside.
- Grab your puff pastry and place on a lightly floured surface so it does not stick.
- Gently roll your puff pastry into a rectangle about 14x11 long.
- Transfer your puff pastry on to a parchment paper lined baking sheet
- Once your puff pastry is ready, spoon on your frangipane on to the puff pastry leaving about ¾ inch on all sides without the topping.
- Once all the frangipane is spooned on, spread it around evenly.
- Now begin placing your pear slices on top of your frangipane. Mix and match the orientation of the slices a bit to make it look more natural.
- Place in your pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.
- While your pastry is cooking, add your vanilla and honey to a sauce pan over medium low heat.
- Heat your honey mixture until it is thin and a good consistency to brush over top of the puff pastry.
- After 20 minutes, you should start to see your pastry browning and puffing up.
- Remove the pastry from the oven and begin brushing your pastry with the honey vanilla mixture.
- Once it is all coated (pastry and pears), place bak into your oven fro 10 minutes or until nice and golden brown.
- Serve immediately or store in an air tight container for up to 2 days.
Sarah says
Oh my goodness this looks so amazing! I can't wait to try this.
Sukoon says
I substituted all purpose flour for almond flour in a traditional Frangipane recipe today and obviously it didn’t turn out well ( it was very gooey ) and then found this blog post, next time I’m going to try your recipe
Melissa says
Let me know how you like it!