DessertGary and Jane LangtonPies & TartsProvencal Recipes

Easy Tart Provencal Pears and Chocolate

This is a really easy recipe for a yummy tart. The seasonal Provencal pears offset the richness of the dark chocolate. Better still, the whole dessert can be prepared the day before and kept in the fridge.

Tart of Provencal Pears and Chocolate

Chocolate Tart with Caramelised Pears

Flaky tart pastry crust with a layer of chocolate, sweet pear slices and drizzled chocolate glaze.
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 15 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine French, Provencal
Servings 6 people

Ingredients
  

Chocolate Tart

  • 1 package Sweet short crust pastry
  • 200 gr Dark chocolate 70% cocoa
  • 50 gr Plain Flour
  • 4 eggs
  • 75 gr melted butter
  • 100 gr golden castor sugar

Chocolate Glaze

  • 2 tbsp double cream
  • 60 gr Dark chocolate finely chopped
  • 1 tsp Golden syrup
  • 1 tbsp warm water

Caramelised Pears

  • 6 large pears ripe
  • 50 gr butter
  • 50 gr caster sugar

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 190C and line and grease a 7–8 inch fluted tart tin with a removable base.
  • Roll out the pastry to 1/8 inch thick and line the tart tin.
  • Place in the refrigerator to rest for 10 minutes, prior to baking.
  • Remove the tart tin from the refrigerator, cover the pastry case with a round of wax paper and fill with baking beans.
  • Bake for 10 minutes at 190C.
  • Remove the baking beans and wax paper and return to the oven for 3 minutes.
  • While the tart is cooking, break the chocolate into little pieces and melt by placing it in a bowl over boiling water – be careful not to let the mixture get too hot, or the chocolate will separate.
  • Mix the eggs, melted butter, castor sugar and flour together in a bowl.
  • Stir in the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.
  • Pour into the prepared pastry case and bake for 6–8 minutes until just set.
  • Set aside to cool.
  • Peel, core and quarter the pears.
  • Melt the butter and castor sugar in a large frying pan and gently sauté the pears until soft and caramelised (golden in colour).
  • Cover and set aside.
  • To make the glaze for the chocolate tart, boil the cream, remove from the heat and stir in the finely chopped chocolate until smooth.
  • Add the golden syrup and warm water, continuing to stir until you have a smooth glossy mixture.
  • Pour the glaze over the cooled tart and place in the fridge to set.
  • Remove from the fridge a few hours before serving.
  • Place a slice of tart, 3 pear quarters on a plate and serve with crème fraiche or vanilla or cinnamon ice cream (the latter choice being my favourite).

Notes

The recipe photo does not include the chocolate glaze.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

.

Please share this with friends and family.

All rights reserved. Perfectly Provence articles and other content may not be published, broadcast, rewritten (including translations into other languages) or redistributed without written permission. For usage information, please contact us.
Syndication Information
Affiliate Information
As an Amazon Associate, this website earns from qualifying purchases. Some recipes, posts and pages may have affiliate links. If you purchase via these links, we receive a small commission that does not impact your price. Thank you in advance for supporting our work to maintain Perfectly Provence.
Previous post

Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat: A Slice of Quiet on the French Riviera

Next post

Cycling Thoughts While Pedalling in Provence

Gary and Jane Langton

When Jane was younger she wanted to be a show-jumper and, although she had some success, Jane knew she could never afford a horse that could take her to the top. Similarly, Jane enjoyed cooking and would have loved to be a chef, but she always knew that the unsocial hours would never fit with raising her family. So she stepped into the world of property construction and interior design, where she enjoyed a successful and fun filled career.

Gary went to a nautical school and always dreamed of going to sea, captaining his own ship. Although he managed to be selected for officer training in the Royal Navy at an early age, by the time he was 18 he no longer had 20:20 vision and his chosen field in the RN was no longer open to him. For a short period Gary studied quantity surveying before finally choosing a career in banking, during which time he lived for a period in New York before returning to London and ultimately running a global business team (involving much travel).

Jane and Gary met, via the internet, in February 2005 and their relationship took off. By 2007 they were married and, in early 2009, they both decided that enough was enough - the constant travelling with their jobs, rushed weekends together and too much politics in their business lives finally taking its toll.

So they decided on a total change of life. Jane had always dreamed of running a boutique hotel or upmarket B&B and pushed this idea which was accepted by Gary as he couldn’t come up with an alternative plan. The couple finally decided on France (proximity to their children in the UK and good weather) and spent about 18 months viewing 100+ properties in the South of France, from Provence to almost Spain and back, before finally settling (in December 2010) on an old stone house (and former silk farm) in La Bruguiere, a small village about 10 minutes from Uzes, France’s first Duchy and a beautiful little town.

The house renovation took 17 months and they first opened for business in summer 2012. As they end their sixth year in France the couple have no regrets and remain positive about their future.

Jane has finally managed to fulfil one of her childhood dreams of cooking professionally for others and continues to ride her horse. Gary works front of house at Mas d'Augustine their chambres d’hôte and (when asked) offers business advice to friends/associates in their location, whilst amusing himself by playing (bass) in a local French group. The couple recently started an additional business to project manage renovation works/remodelling (and, if requested, provide interior design) of holiday homes for absentee owners.

Life is too short to stand still and wait for it – Jane and Gary are firm believers that life is for the taking. Enjoy Jane's recipes here or spend a couple of nights to savour her cooking first hand.

No Comment

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating





The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.