While regular tarts can be hard to make, gluten free tarts can be especially difficult. So for today’s recipe I challenged myself to create an easy but delicious gluten free tart. Allow me to introduce you the gluten free chocolate frangipane pear tart! With rich and comforting flavors, it is the perfect tart to bake during the colder season.
To make the gluten free base I used a mix of oat flour and almond meal. I love baking with oat flour whenever I’m making gluten free goodies. I find it is the most similar to regular flour because it doesn’t have a strong flavor of its own and it is quite nutritious. The almond meal provides additional nutrients and a nice chewy texture.
To minimize the volume of liquids going into the batter I chose to use vanillated sugar instead of vanilla extract. You can find vanillated sugar in most grocery stores that carry European products, or online on Amazon. However, for this recipe you could get away with adding vanilla extract, if you’d prefer to use that one instead.
I also opted to make a quick and easy honey and star anise glaze. The star anise flavor complements the pears beautifully. This recipe is not very sweet, so don’t skip the glaze if you have a really sweet tooth.
I baked this tart in a tart pan of 25 cm (10 inch) diameter with removable bottom. Please keep in mind that if you use a differently-sized pan, the baking time will differ. You will know the tart is ready when you insert a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean.
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Lastly, the recipe for the gluten free chocolate frangipane pear tart:
Gluten Free Chocolate Frangipane Pear Tart
Ingredients
For the tart:
- 1 cup (100 g/ 3 ½ oz.) oat flour
- 1 cup (100 g/ 3 ½ oz.) almond meal
- 1 stick (115 g/ 4 oz.) unsalted butter
- ½ cup (100 g/ 3 ½ oz.) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (25 g/ 1 oz.) Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 large pears, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp. vanillated sugar
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter, for greasing the tart pan
For the glaze:
- ¼ cup (85 g/ 3 oz.) liquid honey
- 8 star anise pods, whole
Instructions
For the tart:
- Preheat oven to 180 °C (350 °F).
- Place the oat flour, almond meal, cocoa powder in a bowl and whisk them well. Set aside.
- Melt the butter over very low temperature, then let it cool a little.
- Crack the eggs into another bowl, add the sugar and beat at high speed with an electric mixer. The mixture is ready when almost triple in volume and light in color. Add the vanillated sugar, salt, and whisk until incorporated.
- With a spatula, incorporate the flour mix in two-three steps, mixing after each addition. Gently pour the melted butter, while folding it in with a spatula in the other hand.
- Spoon the batter into a greased tart pan and spread it evenly. Place the sliced pears on top of the tart and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan.
For the glaze:
- Place the honey and star anise pods in a small pot over the low heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little.
- While tart still warm, brush it with the honey glaze and decorate it with star anise pods (optional).
