Pear

This classic tart has a filling of frangipane (an almond-flavored cream) and caramelized pears enclosed between two layers of puff pastry. The tart is named for the French town in which it was created. It is best eaten the day it is baked.

Turnovers are always a favorite; their light Puff Pastry shells burst with fresh fruit. Our three fillings provide this classic dessert with a fresh twist: Five-spice powder lends its subtle aroma to pear, peach chunks blend with homemade raspberry jam, and sage plays off the sweetness of summer blueberries. All the fillings can be used interchangeably—simply prepare and fill the dough as instructed.

For the prettiest chips, use blemish-free pears that are not quite ripe. A mandoline will help make the pear slices perfectly even.

This is a slight twist on applesauce cake, relying instead on a homemade pear sauce. The cake can be made a day ahead. Keep it at room temperature, then glaze it and garnish it with pear chips just before serving

The crimson filling is only part of this pie’s allure. A gorgeous, sugar-coated crust is also sure to impress any valentine, and you can take your pick of two different styles: Heart-shaped cookie cutters create windows in a double crust, near right, and fashion an overlapping shingled top, far right. Baking times are the same for either variation.

Rather than weaving strips of dough under and over one another, the latticelike design for this pie is formed by cutting squares from a round of rolled-out pâte brisée. The cutouts are arranged around the edge of the pie plate, in overlapping fashion, for a striking frame.

Chocolate marries well with many different types of fruit, but pears and chocolate make an extra-special pair. Here, a ring of sliced fruit sits atop a deep, dark chocolate filling, which puffs up as it bakes. Arrange the slices so the curved edges all face the same way, with the narrow ends pointing toward the tart’s center.

Pear and almond tart is one of the best known—and most revered—desserts of classic French pastry; it’s also one of Martha’s favorites. Almonds are sprinkled over the top and flavor both the press-in crust and the frangipane filling. Halved pears, poached in white wine and vanilla, are nestled in neat rows, leaving just enough room in between for the filling to rise during baking and turn a splendid shade of golden brown.

Brown butter, vanilla-bean seeds, and freshly grated ginger are used here in good measure to flavor individual pear-custard-filled pies. The pleated pastry shells are formed in a standard muffin tin, allowing for easy removal after baking.

This is no ordinary double-crust fruit pie. Fresh pears, dried figs, and toasted walnuts combine to create a wonderful contrast of tastes and textures. Before tossing them with the other ingredients, the figs are simmered in Madeira wine until softened; star anise adds an unexpected flavor note. Use kitchen shears to stem and quarter the figs.

A mixture of sweet Bartlett pears and sour cherries fills sheets of flaky puff pastry. Traces of ground black pepper and five-spice powder (a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, star anise, and Szechuan pepper used in Chinese cooking) provide exotic notes.

Here’s a great weeknight dessert option—no rolling pin required. The cream cheese dough comes together quite easily, and is simply patted into a thin round. A single pear is thinly sliced, then tossed in a bowl with pear brandy, sugar, and lemon juice. The mixture is then fanned out over the dough before baking. Whipped cream makes a nice accompaniment, as does a snifter of pear brandy, naturally.

Season: Late August to October. It always amazes me just how much fruit a gnarled old pear tree can bear in a good season. However, it’s still a little tricky to catch pears at their point of perfect ripeness–somewhere between bullet hard and soft and woolly. Never mind, should you find yourself with a boxful of underripe specimens, this recipe turns them into a preserve “pear excellence.” These pears are particularly delicious served with thick vanilla custard or used as a base for a winter fruit salad. Alternatively, try serving them with terrines and pâtés, or mix them with chicory leaves drizzled with a honey mustard dressing and crumbled blue cheese.

Season: August to December. I love pickled fruits and always look forward to opening a jar to serve with cold poultry and ham. Small, hard pears are ideal for use in this recipe, and it’s a very good way to deal with a barrel-load of them. If you stick with the basic quantities of sugar and vinegar, this recipe can easily be adapted for use with other fruits and different spices (see the variations below).

The recipe for this homey cake comes from my mom, who made it for us to sell at my restaurant and then in the early days of the Market. I think that cast-iron skillets are one of the most versatile and indispensible cooking vessels you can have, and this cake is proof of that!

This is one of our all-time classic salads. It’s easy to see why it’s so popular: it has the perfect combination of sweet fruit, crunchy nuts, tangy cheese, and tender spinach, bound together by a delicate vinaigrette. It’s substantial yet not too heavy, perfectly suited as an accompaniment to other dishes.

Although it might sound exotic, savory chutney has a time-honored place on nearly every American’s Thanksgiving table in the form of cranberry sauce. Chutneys are flexible, versatile condiments that add a nice sweet-sour note to roasted meats, sandwiches, and cheese platters. Although sour cherries add a lovely tangy punch to this chutney, you could also use golden raisins, dried cranberries, diced dried apricots, or nearly any other dried fruit. Instead of the pears, you can use apples—as long as it’s a variety that will hold its shape after cooking. This is best made a day or two in advance so all the flavors have a chance to come together.

Because of their tart dressings, salads are not always wine-friendly dishes, but adding cured meat like prosciutto can bridge the divide. Toasted nuts help, too, contributing a buttery note that mellows vinegar’s sharpness. This autumn salad from the winery pairs slender French haricots verts (green beans) with a blend of cool-weather greens and a hazelnut-oil dressing. Follow it with roast chicken or duck.

All you need to have on hand to make this delightfully simple and relatively wholesome dessert are two ingredients—pears and sugar (plus water). A melon baller makes quick work of coring pears, but a small spoon can be used instead.

THE WASHINGTON STATE CLIMATE IS IDEAL for pear trees, and year-round our local markets stock endless varieties, such as sweet Anjou, aromatic Bosc, sweet and juicy Yellow Bartlett, and the crisp Comice. Pear and ginger play off each other in an interesting way, with the heat of ginger cutting the sweetness of the fruit. Be sure to use slightly underripe fruit for the best texture; overripe fruit has too much moisture for this pie.

GOOD TO KNOW For a more satisfying meal, try incorporating just a small amount of a flavorful high-fat ingredient such as bacon or nuts into the low-calorie mix. Here pancetta is crisped in the oven for handsoff, splatter-free cooking, a method that works well for bacon, too.