It seems like every year I fixate on some classic pastry and this year it might be fresh fruit and frangipane tarts. Frangipane sometimes spelled with an e, sometimes not, I like the e, is a simple almond cream made with usually equal parts butter, sugar, and ground almonds. It also has whole eggs and either flour or cornstarch, and traditionally a good amount of dark rum. If you like a little bit of romantic pastry lore, frangipane, was invented by an Italian pastry chef and is named after a famous glove maker who made the finest leather gloves of the time and rubbed the inside of the gloves with almond oil. So pear frangipane tart, we take classic sweet almond shortbread and fill the tart with the frangipane cream and then place fresh ripe pear slices into the frangipane and sprinkle with sliced almonds. As the tart bakes, the pears sink further into the frangipane and drown into the tart. Parts of the frangipane bake getting nice and golden brown, while parts next to pieces of pear stay light and soft. The frangipane absorbs juices that bake out of the pear, it’s kind of glorious really. We top it all with a little vanilla chantilly.
*pastries noted with an * are not available as part of our miniature desserts by the dozen.*
common allergies: wheat//dairy//eggs// almonds
