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Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream

This Cranberry Pear Tart is a delicious and stunning crowd pleaser! Fresh, tart cranberries combine with juicy pears and almond cream in a sweet crust. It’s perfection!

Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream | Some the WiserI love the new series, Bringing Back Sunday Dinner, on Simple Bites. When I first saw it, I couldn’t help but nod my head in agreement as I read along – yes, let’s bring back Sunday Dinner! My Grandmothers always put on a big mid-afternoon meal every Sunday when I was growing up and I always think of those gatherings with such fondness. I’m ready to Bring Back Sunday Dinner too!

So what makes Sunday dinner different than dinner every other night of the week? It’s the extra preparation! For me, the main dish part of the meal is easy – I normally put a lot of effort into the main dish anyway. At our house, dessert is not a normal part of our regular meals. Just having dessert at all will make Sunday Dinner a little more special, but having a really nice dessert will make Sunday Dinner really memorable.

Thanks to the new Simple Bites series, I’m committing myself to real Sunday Dinners this year. We will enjoy a meal made more special by inviting family and friends, prepared with extra special care, and dressed up a bit with our nicest tableware. Best of all, we are going to have Dessert on Sunday. I’m getting excited just thinking of all the dessert recipes that will be gracing our Sunday table this year.

Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream | Some the WiserTo start us off right, we are enjoying this Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream. It takes a little more time than the simple brownies and puddings we normally whip up after a meal, but it is well worth the extra effort. The kids definitely knew something special was happening when I brought this beautiful tart out!

I’m looking forward to all the Sunday Dinners ahead of us. I’m really looking forward to the memories and traditions that this extra effort once a week will pass on to my children. But if I’m being honest, I am most looking forward to Dessert on Sunday – I think the kids would say the same thing, especially when it includes this Cranberry Pear Tart!

Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream | Some the Wiser

This Cranberry Pear Tart is on our permanent favorite dessert menu. It’s just that good.

Looking for more delicious dessert recipes?  Try this Pumpkin Brownie Bundt Cake and this Cinnamon Apple Galette with Salted Maple Glaze.

Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream

Cranberry Pear Tart with Almond Cream

Ingredients

  • 2 cans Libby's Pear Halves, well drained and patted dry
  • 1 cup fresh cranberries, washed and dried

For the Crust

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 9 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter cut into small pieces
  • 1 large egg yolk

For the Almond Cream:

  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup ground blanched almonds
  • 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Instructions

  1. For the Crust: Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9 inch fluted tart pan and set aside.
  2. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse twice. Add the pieces of cold butter to the dry mixture and pulse until mixture resembles coarse corn meal. Lightly beat the yolk and slowly add it to the flour mixture, pulsing after each addition. When the yolk has been added, pulse until dough begins to form large clumps. Remove dough from processor and knead it on a lightly floured surface until it is well combined.
  3. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the buttered tart pan. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes before baking.
  4. Cover the tart with a buttered piece of aluminum foil. Bake on the center rack of preheated oven for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and cool.
  5. For the Almond Cream: Combine the butter and sugar in a food processor until smooth. Add the ground almonds, flour, and cornstarch being sure to process after the addition of each ingredient. Add the egg, vanilla, and spices and process until the almond cream is well combined.
  6. To assemble the tart: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread the almond cream evenly on the bottom of the baked crust. Thinly slice 6 to 8 pear halves crosswise. Scoop each half onto a spatula and slide it onto the almond cream in the center of the tart, placing the wide end of each pear toward the edge of the crust. Gently press down on the pear to fan out the slices forming a circle of pear spokes in the center of the tart. Pour the cranberries over the almond cream and arrange evenly over the tart.
  7. Bake the tart for 50 to 60 minutes or until the almond cream is puffy and golden. Cool tart on a wire rack and serve at room temperature.
© Some the Wiser

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      • You can use fresh pears for this, but you would want to poach them first. And yes, you can sub almond flour for the ground blanched almonds. Enjoy!

        Reply

    • You can use fresh pears for this, but you would want to poach them first. And yes, you can sub almond flour for the ground blanched almonds. Enjoy!

      Reply

  2. I forgot to comment on this recipe until now… I made this for a family Christmas get together this past year and it was amazing! Not only was it beautiful it was delicious too. Definitely a keeper, I am going to make it this week for a dinner we are hosting for friends, it’s that good!

    Reply

  3. Hi! Thank you for this awesome recipe. How far in advance can I make this for Thanksgiving? If I made it tomorrow do you think it would be ok for Thursday?

    Reply

    • Yes, you can make the dough by whisking together the dry ingredients. Then, cut in the butter with a knife and fork – use your fingers if necessary to make a good, even crumble before you add the wet ingredients. Enjoy!

      Reply

  6. Just made this tart for our Thanksgiving dinner – it sits there so beautiful waiting for us to eat it! I poached my own pears three days ago using recipe from David Leibovitz. Prepped crust and mixed all the dry ingridients for almond cream yesterday, so this morning just had to assemble and bake it. Thank you for the recipe, I am sure I will be making it many times in the future.

    Reply

  8. I made it, very delicious. I used fresh pears that I poached the day before with moscato wine. The struggle was to keep the kids from eating all the poached pears with iced cream. Now I know to make extra next time. I also sprinkle little bit of the syrup from the poached on top of the cranberry it helps reduce the tartness of it. I am freezing some cranberry so I can make it again when pears are in season.

    Reply

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