1-First, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and gather all your ingredients. This tart involves poaching the pears, so let’s start there based on the recipe. Core the 3 firm slightly ripe pears and poach them whole in a simmering syrup made from 6 cups cold water, 2 cups granulated sugar, 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 star anise pod, 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste, and 2 strips lemon peel plus half a lemon. For more on poaching, check out this guide to poaching pears.

2-Turn the pears occasionally until they’re tender, then cool them in the syrup. Meanwhile, prepare the tart dough by mixing 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon lemon zest. Add 11 tablespoons cold cubed unsalted butter until distributed, then mix in 1 large egg yolk and 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract to form the dough.

3-Press the dough into a tart pan and chill for at least 1 hour. Blind bake the chilled tart shell by lining it with greased foil and baking weights at 375°F for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden; let it cool. For the frangipane filling, beat 8 tablespoons softened unsalted butter with ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, then add 1 cup almond flour alternately with 3 large whole eggs at room temperature.

4-Mix in 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon lemon zest, and 1 tablespoon dark rum if you like. Fill the cooled tart shell with the frangipane, arrange the sliced poached pears on top, and bake at 375°F for 40-55 minutes until the frangipane is golden and risen. If you’re interested in similar baking ideas, try this apple spice crumb muffins recipe for another fruity treat.

5-Cool the tart before serving, dust with powdered sugar, or glaze with apricot preserves. It takes about 1 hour prep, 1 hour 30 minutes cook time, plus chilling and cooling, for a total of around 3 hours 30 minutes. The recipe yields 8 servings from a 10-inch tart pan.