This is a simple dessert that can be baked at home, with minimum fuss. It does not have to be baked blind. It is best to use a summer variety of pear, such as Williams, which are readily available in most greengrocers.
It is best to make the shortcrust pastry by hand, to obtain a more crumbly texture. Home-made ice-cream works well as an accompaniment, or a good quality shop-bought alternative.
Ian Devine is chef tutor at Howth Castle Cookery School
Pear and almond tart
Makes one
Ingredients
For the pastry:
100g cold butter, cut into cubes
225g plain flour
25g icing sugar
1 egg, beaten
For the filling:
175g soft butter
175g caster sugar
175g ground almonds
3 free range eggs, beaten
40g plain flour
1 tsp almond extract
6 Williams pears, peeled, cored and halved
To finish:
Apricot jam, melted with a tablespoon of water, for a glaze
25g flaked toasted almonds
Method
1 Rub butter, flour and icing sugar together until they resemble breadcrumbs. Stir in the one beaten egg, and bring together to form a dough. Form the pastry into a flat smooth shape, wrap in cling film, and refrigerate for one hour.
2 Make the filling: cream the butter and sugar together, then slowly add the beaten eggs. (Don't worry if the mixture looks curdled at this stage.) Add the ground almonds, flour and almond extract. Mix well together, and leave in fridge until required.
3 Roll out the chilled pastry on a lightly floured work surface, and line an 11-inch diameter fluted tart ring with the pastry. Chill the lined tart tin in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to avoid pastry shrinkage.
4 Spoon the almond frangipane mixture into the pastry case and level the top using a small palate knife. Arrange the pear halves, cut side down attractively on the filling.
5 Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and place the prepared tart on the middle shelf of the oven. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
6 Remove the tart from oven, and allow it to cool before glazing the surface with the jam and sprinkle the toasted flaked almonds on top.
7 Serve with ice cream or crème fraîche.
Kitchen Cabinet is a series of recipes from chefs who are members of Euro-Toques Ireland who have come together during the coronavirus outbreak to share some of the easy, tasty things that they like to cook and eat at home #ChefsAtHome
