Tarte tatin is normally associated with apples and by the mere fact that it’s French can seem daunting. fear not, tarte tatin is easy and this pear tarte tatin is a breeze to make and a joy on the plate.
I love pears, the taste, the smell, the look of them. I even admire their trickiness of will they, won’t they be ready to eat, and then that one day when they are just perfect, if you miss it, you’ve lost.
Pears go well in all sorts of recipes and I just love them in this pear pie, or a pear version of that famous French classic tarte tatin that uses apples.
Tarte Tatin
There is such a great story to this fabulously simple French apple tart.
It was originally created by accident at the Hôtel Tatin in Lamotte-Beuvron which is south of Paris. In the 1880s the hotel was run by two sisters, Stéphanie and Caroline Tatin.
Apparently Stephanie was cooking apples and they went just a bit too far. Deciding not to waste them she put some pastry on top and put the whole pan in the oven. The resulting concoction was then flipped on to a plate and the Tarte Tatin (upside-down pie) was born.
Ingredients for pear tarte tatin/pear pie
Pears
unsalted butter
pinch of salt and cinnamon
brown sugar
puff pastry
Puff pastry
You can make your own puff pastry base for this pear pie if you want to be a total purist.
Personally I don’t bother, a good store-bought puff pastry is as good as anything you’d make at home. It makes creating a pie like this something really quick and easy and just doable for a tasty treat any day of the week.
How to make pear pie
In an oven-proof pan (my trusty old cast iron skillet) heat the sugar along with water and cinnamon to create a syrup.
Remove from heat and stir in the butter and salt and add the pears cut sides up.
Cook for 10 minutes then cool completely before rolling out the puff pastry and laying it on top and tucking it in all round
Now simply bake in the oven for about 30 minutes before turning it out on to a serving plate.
Voila! Pear Tarte Tatin.
How to serve
I like to serve my pear pie warm with some ice cream (plain vanilla) on the side.
Looking for more delightful desserts to make at home? Then check these out before you go;
Easy traditional French cherry clafoutis
Fig and feta tarts with thyme and honey
Layered Crepe Cake with berries
Roasted figs with orange and honey
Warm fruit salad with golden yogurt sauce
Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.
Pear Tarte Tatin (upside-down pear pie)
Ingredients
- 4 pears peeled, cored and halved
- 100 g light brown sugar
- 85 g unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 300 g puff pastry ready rolled
Instructions
- preheat oven to 200C
- Gently heat the sugar with a couple of tablespoons of water plus the cinnamon in a 9" cast iron skillet or other oven-proof shallow pan
- Add the butter and salt to the pan and place the pears in with cut side up
- cook for 10 minutes then remove from heat and allow to cool
- place the puff pastry on top and tuck it in all round
- bake for 25-30 minutes till pastry has risen and is golden and juices oozing from sides and immediately invert pan on to a serving plate
That looks delicious. I will have to try this instead of the usual apples.
My husband and I went to the Hotel Tatin one evening after travelling all day in our motor home, wearing our shorts and with tousled hair. The staff were very gracious in finding a table and we had a lovely meal, of course finished off with apple tart tatin!
Hi Kirsty
Oh how amazing to go to that actual hotel. I love France and have stayed there often. would love to visit all those iconic foodie places sometime. Hope you’ll make this pear version of that famous tart.
K