This Rustic Pear Tart is a delicious dessert for fall and winter that makes a beautiful presentation for any occasion. The flaky, buttery crust pairs perfectly with spiced pears for a rustic, warm treat. My recipe for this Rustic Pear Tart is also gluten-free and dairy-free — a fantastic fit for both Paleo and AIP diets.
A Rustic Pear Tart with Healthy Ingredients
This Rustic Pear Tart is made with healthy, wholesome, real food ingredients that make it perfect for the occasional indulgence. Traditional pear tarts contain flour, sugar, and butter. However, mine does not! To keep this pear tart gluten-free and dairy-free, I replaced the inflammatory ingredients with healthier alternatives that your body will thank you for.
Arrowroot Starch, Coconut Flour, & Tigernut Flour
Arrowroot starch blended with coconut flour and tigernut flour is an excellent replacement for white wheat flour (although the measurements are different for every recipe). This particular blend of starchy flours makes a gluten-free crust that is just as light and flaky as the traditional pie crust your grandmother used to.
Palm Shortening
Sustainably harvested palm shortening is an excellent replacement for butter, and this ingredient keeps my recipe completely dairy-free. Palm oil is high in Vitamin E and contains nearly equal amounts of unsaturated and saturated fats for a healthy balance of essential nutrients.
Applesauce & Coconut Sugar
Traditional recipes for pear tarts are full of refined sugar. This healthier, whole food version gets its sweetness from pears, applesauce, and a touch of coconut sugar. Overall, this recipe contains less than half of the sugar you’ll find in most fruit tarts, and it won’t spike your blood sugar levels.
How to Make this Rustic Pear Tart
This recipe has specific instructions, so it’s important to read through the recipe and familiarize yourself with all the steps before you begin. However, you don’t need to worry — your tart should turn out perfectly if you use these ingredients, measure them correctly, and follow the directions.
You’ll start by making the dough. Shape your palm shortening so that it looks like a cylinder or a log, and then flatten it. Place the flattened log of palm shortening into the freezer for about 15 minutes, then cut into ½ inch cubes. Set this aside for a moment.
Add all the dry ingredients to a bowl and combine thoroughly. Then, crumble your cubes of chilled palm shortening into the dry mixture. Combine everything using either a fork or your hand, being careful not to overmix. I recommend using a fork because you don’t want the palm shortening to get too warm. The mixture should be very dry, almost like sand.
Now, add the coconut milk to your mixture until a dough forms. If the dough is still too dry, you can add additional coconut milk one tablespoon at a time until a pliable dough forms. Allow your dough to chill in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes while you make the filling for your Rustic Pear Tart.
Before you begin to make the filling, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
To make the filling, first stir the cinnamon into the applesauce. Prepare your pears by slicing off the “hips,” then slicing them about ¼ inch thick. Place the pear slices into a bowl and squeeze the juice from half a lemon over the top.
Finally, it’s time to assemble your tart. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place onto parchment paper, then flatten into a circle about a ½ inch thick. Place more parchment paper on top and roll out the dough with a rolling pin until it’s about a ¼ inch thick.
Transfer rolled dough onto a baking sheet and cover the bottom with the applesauce mixture, leaving about two inches of dough bare around the edges. Then, begin layering your pear slices, overlapping them slightly, around the perimeter working your way towards the inner circle. Use the edges of the parchment paper to help you fold the border of the dough over the pears. Most of the pears will be exposed.
Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 40 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Allow to cool completely before cutting.
How to Store this Rustic Pear Tart
If you’re serving your Rustic Pear Tart immediately after it cools, or within the same day it’s made, you can store it on the countertop. If you’re preparing the tart ahead of time or if you have leftovers, store it in the refrigerator.
Perfectly Paleo Rustic Pear Tart
Course:
Servings
8
Ingredients
For the Paleo Tart Crust
- 3/4 cup 180.00 ml arrowroot starch
- 3/4 cup 180.00 ml Tigernut flour
- 1/2 cup 120.00 ml coconut flour
- 1/4 tsp 1.23 ml sea salt
- 1 1/2 tbsp 22.18 ml gelatin
- 1/3 cup 80.00 ml palm shortening
- 1 cup 240.00 ml coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp 29.57 ml coconut sugar
For the Paleo Tart Filling
- 1/2 cup 120.00 ml applesauce no sugar added
- 1/2 tsp 2.46 ml cinnamon
- 2 pear
- 1/2 lemon
Instructions
- Measure and shape the palm shortening into a cylinder shape and flatten this onto a plate. Place in the freezer to harden, about 15 minutes. Remove from freezer and cut into ½” cubes. Set aside.
- Add the arrowroot starch, tigernut flour, coconut flour, sea salt, and gelatin to a bowl. Stir to combine.
- Crumble the palm shortening into the flour mixture and combine using a fork or with your hands. Do not overmix. The mixture should be very crumbly, similar to the consistency of sand.
- Pour 3/4 cup coconut milk into the flour mixture, adding 2-4 additional tablespoons until the dough can easily be formed into a ball. If your dough is still crumbly, you can slowly add more milk 1 tablespoon at a time until it comes together.
- Allow the dough to chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. While the dough is chilling, begin making the filling.
- Stir together the applesauce and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
- Stand a pear up so the stem is facing the ceiling. With a sharp knife, carefully slice the “hips” off the pear so you are left with a square core. Discard the core. Slice each hip of the pear into roughly ¼” thick slices. Repeat with the second pear. Place all pear slices into a bowl, and cover with the juice of ½ a lemon.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Remove chilled dough from the fridge and place it on a sheet of parchment paper. Using your hands, form the dough into a rough circle, sealing any cracks that appear in the dough as you go (this is a rustic tart - it’s not meant to look perfect!) The dough at this point will likely be around ½” thick.
- Place a second sheet of parchment paper on top of the dough and use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to about ¼” thickness. Carefully slide the bottom layer of parchment paper onto a baking sheet, and discard the top layer.
- Spread the applesauce mixture in the center of the dough, leaving about 2” around the entire perimeter.
- Starting with the outer ring, arrange the pear slices over the applesauce mixture, slightly overlapping. Continue around the entire perimeter and then repeat for the inner circle.
- Fold the edge of the dough over the filling. This will not completely cover the pears and does not need to be even.
- Bake the tart for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake for another 40 minutes. You do not need to remove the tart from the oven as you reduce the temperature. The tart is done with the pears are tender and the crust is golden brown.
- Allow your Perfectly Paleo Rustic Pear Tart to cool completely before cutting into slices and serving. If you cut into the tart while it’s still warm, the crust will crumble.
