Easy Reduced-Carb Pear Tart

For world diabetes day we’re sharing a low carb pear tart.

This low carb pear tart was made to please a kid with type-1 diabetes, not for someone on a diet. We’re not trying to eliminate carbs entirely (although you could make this as a keto pear tart), we just have to watch the number. I’m a big fan of when he has carbs trying to use real ingredients like almond flour and fruit, as in this tart.

That being said, to make it a more keto pear pie with even fewer carbs, you could substitute a sugar alcohol such as erythritol for the coconut sugar.

Cooking for someone with Type 1 Diabetes presents challenges. Let’s face it: it takes a lot of the joy out of cooking. Baking becomes a mathematical equation: how many carbs? What can I substitute to make it so my son can have a good-sized portion without needing to jack up his insulin dosage? It’s a constant balancing act between indulgence – which we like plenty in our family – and health. Many of my experiments have been disasters (my homemade sugar free jello was declared inedible), but this low carb pear tart worked out well enough to share.

Low Carb Gluten Free Pear Pie Recipe

Serves: 8
Cook time: 35 minutes
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook method: baking

Ingredients for the crust:

• 1 1/4 c. almond flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 Tbsp c. coconut sugar
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 1-2 Tbsp water
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon

Ingredients for the filling:

• 3 -4 pears (ripe but not mushy)
• 1 Tbsp coconut sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 Tbsp butter

Ingredients for the topping:

• 1 c heavy whipping cream
• 1-2 tsp agave nectar or a few drops of liquid Stevia

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425.

2. Blend the flours, sugar, cinnamon, and salt, then pulse together with the butter in a food processor for 25-35 seconds. Add the water and pulse a few more times. Put it into a greased tart pan with removable bottom and press firmly to distribute, covering the bottom and working the crust up a bit on the sides.

3. Blind bake the tart shell for 5-7 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before adding the pears.

4. Quarter the pears lengthwise, core them, then slice thinly (also lengthwise). Mix together the sugar and cinnamon. Starting in the center, place the pear sliced in a spiral pattern, using about half the pears for the first layer. Sprinkle with half the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Repeat, creating a second layer of pear, and sprinkle with the remaining sugar and cinnamon mixture. Dot with butter, then place in the preheated oven.

5. After 5 minutes, lower the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 25-30 minutes. (You should be able to see bubbling liquid under the pears.)

5. Cool on a wire rack. Serve warm or room temperature.

6. A couple of notes: We top it with homemade whipped cream to which we add just a few drops of Stevia liquid or a 1-2 tsp of agave nectar (or sugar). Cream is already pretty sweet and doesn’t need a lot of additional sugar. Added bonus is that it gives my boys something to do while the tart is in the oven.

We leave the skins on the pears, as it increased the nutritional value and we don’t mind them. You could adapt the recipe for apples, and those would be better peeled.

Enjoy! One serving has about 15 carbs.

Learn more about Type 1 Diabetes.

By Peg Kern

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Originally published November 14, 2019.