Name: Easy-Fancy Pear Galette
Yield: 8–12 servings
Ingredients: ½ cup (60 g) almond flour or meal; ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar; 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour; 1 tsp. ground cardamom; 1¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, divided; 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooled, plus 1 Tbsp. room temperature; 1 tsp. almond extract; 2 large eggs; ½ cup (80 g) finely chopped candied ginger; 1 17.3-oz. or 14-oz. package frozen puff pastry, preferably all-butter, thawed; 2 15-oz. cans pear halves in light or heavy syrup, drained, thinly sliced; ¼ cup (30 g) sliced almonds; 2 Tbsp. honey; Flaky sea salt; Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (for serving; optional)

EasyFancy Pear Galette on a sheetpan cut into squares and served with ice cream.

Photograph by Rana Duzyol, Food Styling by Jesse Szewczyk, Prop Styling by Marina Bevilacqua

This pear galette recipe may look and sound fancy, but as the name promises, it’s unbelievably easy. You won’t have to worry about what kind of pears to use. (Sleepless nights debating the merits of Bartlett vs. Bosc vs. Anjou be gone!) We simplify your life by calling for canned pears—a trick borrowed from French patisseries and their elaborate pear tarts. If it’s good enough for the professionals, it’s good enough for us. This also means no poaching for you, eliminating one time-consuming step from the process. You won’t have to fuss with a pie crust either; store-bought puff pastry will do just fine for our galette dough, thank you very much, which you’ll quickly roll out on your work surface and transfer to a baking sheet, no specialty pan required.

You’ll fan the pear slices out on a gingery almond cream that gets whisked together in the blink of an eye, then line the edges of the dough with sliced almonds that get adhered with a simple egg wash. As the galette bakes, the border will puff and those almonds will toast, giving this fall dessert a nice bit of nutty crunch—a wonderful contrast to the juicy pears. Best of all, this dessert will be out of the oven and cooling before your aunt has finished cutting the fruit for her famous apple pie. Why don’t you go over and give her a hand?

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What you’ll need

Set of 6 Pastry Rulers
$20 At Kitchen Jukebox
Small Offset Spatula
$5 At Amazon
Rimmed Baking Sheet
$28 At Amazon
Wire Cooling Rack
$17 At Bon Appétit Market

Recipe information

Yield
8–12 servings

Ingredients

½ cup (60 g) almond flour or meal

¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar

2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. ground cardamom

1¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, divided

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooled, plus 1 Tbsp. room temperature

1 tsp. almond extract

2 large eggs

½ cup (80 g) finely chopped candied ginger

1 17.3-oz. or 14-oz. package frozen puff pastry, preferably all-butter, thawed

2 15-oz. cans pear halves in light or heavy syrup, drained, thinly sliced

¼ cup (30 g) sliced almonds

2 Tbsp. honey

Flaky sea salt

Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (for serving; optional)

Preparation

Step 1
Place a rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 375°. Whisk ½ cup (60 g) almond flour or meal, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, 1 tsp. ground cardamom, and 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a medium bowl to combine. Add 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooled, 1 tsp. almond extract, and 1 large egg and whisk to combine. Stir ½ cup (80 g) finely chopped candied ginger into almond cream with a rubber spatula.
Step 2
If using a 17.3-oz. package of frozen puff pastry, preferably all-butter, thawed, with 2 sheets, stack sheets and roll out on a piece of parchment paper to ⅛" thick.
Step 3
If using a 14-oz. package of frozen puff pastry, preferably all-butter, thawed, with 1 sheet, gently roll out on a piece of parchment paper just to smooth out any creases.
Step 4
Transfer pastry on parchment to a rimmed baking sheet. Using a paring knife, score about a ½" border around all sides, cutting about halfway through. Prick pastry within border in several spots with a fork (this will keep pastry from rising too much as it bakes).
Step 5
Using an offset spatula, spread almond cream evenly over pastry, staying inside border. Fan two 15-oz. cans pear halves in light or heavy syrup, drained, thinly sliced, over almond cream. Lightly beat remaining 1 large egg in a small bowl just to blend, then brush pastry border with egg. Sprinkle border with ¼ cup (30 g) sliced almonds and gently press to adhere.
Step 6
Bake galette until pastry is puffed and golden and almond cream is no longer wet, 30–40 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° and continue to bake until pastry is deep golden brown and bottom is crisp, 20–30 minutes longer. Let galette cool on baking sheet 5 minutes, then, using parchment paper, slide onto a wire rack; let cool completely.
Step 7
Just before serving, heat 2 Tbsp. honey, remaining 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature, and remaining ¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or Morton kosher salt in a small saucepan over low, stirring occasionally, until butter is melted, about 2 minutes. Brush honey butter over galette, then sprinkle lightly with flaky sea salt. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream if desired.