19 of Our Best Pear Dessert Recipes

These flaky little pies may be the ultimate grab-and-go dessert.

Instead of apple pie, chef Shawn McClain ends his Thanksgivings with this stunning tarte Tatin. Because the recipe calls for store-bought puff pastry (McClain is a huge fan of Dufour's), it's quite easy to prepare.

"I grew up watching my mom make pies," says chef Grant Achatz. "My father would always envy her amazingly tender and flaky crusts. He is a great cook, but he could never quite make a piecrust like she can. Her crust rules, and I understand now that the secret is finesse, and genetically cold hands." Achatz's pie, inspired by his mom's, is as straightforward as it gets, with a melt-in-your-mouth all-shortening crust and a lightly sweetened pear filling with just a hint of spice.

Because Neil Perry has a passion for wine, he uses Sauternes in every component of this dessert, from the cake to the sauce. He also adds olive oil to the batter, which creates a delightfully moist crumb.

These soufflés collapse gracefully in their molds, so there's no need to rush them to the table; they're more like a light cake than a delicate whipped-egg-white confection.

F&W published the recipe for this not-too-sweet fruit pancake to celebrate the publication of the 2005 edition of Paula Wolfert's 1983 classic, The Cooking of Southwest France. Flaugnarde is a sibling of the baked fruit dessert called clafoutis. It's just as good for brunch as it is for dessert, served puffed and hot right out of the oven.

This super moist loaf spiked with candied ginger is the perfect tea cake.

Adding pear preserves to this streusel-topped coffee cake makes it especially moist and delicious.

These poached pears taste best if made a day or two in advance, giving them time to soak in the poaching liquid. When ready to serve, reduce the liquid to a fine red wine syrup to spoon over each pear.

Firm pears are the key to this impressive dessert; look for a thin layer of green under the skin as you peel them. Stir the caramel and pear mixture gently with a wooden spoon to preserve the shape of the pear slices.

These poached pears from star chef Ludo Lefebvre get gorgeous color and flavor from the beet-juice-spiked syrup they're poached in. It's a brilliant twist on the classic French recipe.

"A little digging suggests that the dessert made famous by British chef Francis Coulson at the Sharrow Bay hotel may in fact be Canadian in origin—which would explain my penchant for it given that I, too, am Canadian," Top Chef judge and cookbook author Gail Simmons says about the origins of sticky toffee cake, or sticky toffee pudding. "The story goes that the dessert was initially made by Patricia Martin at her country hotel in Claughton, England, and later appeared as her contribution to a compilation of recipes published in 1971. Reports differ as to whether she learned the recipe from a Canadian friend or from two Canadian air force officers who stayed at her hotel. But I would love sticky toffee cake no matter where it originated."

A mix of alternative flours—here, two kinds of rice flour and arrowroot—deliver a gluten-free crust that is flaky, buttery, and crisp. The floral sweetness from the honey and pears is nicely balanced by tangy cream cheese. Be sure to let the galette rest at least 30 minutes to give the filling time to firm up for easier slicing.

Languedoc and Mediterranean France make beautifully aromatic, sweet Muscat dessert wines that soak into these poached pears. This recipe, which writer Steve Hoffman tasted in the town of Autignac, replaces the usual sugar with honey and counters the sweetness and floral notes of the reduced wine with some of the resinous and earthy aromas of the area's famous wild scrubland—namely bay, thyme, and fennel. A knife inserted into a poached pear should encounter about the same resistance as room-temperature butter.

In this recipe, cookbook author and F&W Cooks contributor Ann Taylor Pittman incorporates ground cardamom in the egg whites for "deep fragrance and warm, sweet notes." She continues, "grapes, pears, and pomegranate arils are the fall fruit trifecta for the topping, each offering its own shade of muted burgundy that feels just right for this time of year. If you've never made a pavlova, you'll be surprised by how easy it is."

Époisses is a custardy, slightly funky cheese that pairs beautifully with sweet, acidic pears. For an easier preparation, transfer the cheese to the freezer for a few minutes to help it firm up before removing the rind.

Serve this savory-sweet tart as a showstopping brunch centerpiece, or cut it into slivers to add to a cheese board. While this recipe is designed for a flameware pan, it can be made in a metal skillet—just monitor the caramel closely.

"This recipe is a riff on my mother-in-law's golden syrup dumplings, elevated with spices and fruit," F&W Cooks contributor Hetty McKinnon says. "While still using very basic pantry ingredients, I've added caramelized pears to the equation, along with warming chai spices to add depth and intrigue."

The smart idea here: adding fragrant, smoky-flavored Lapsang souchong tea to the buttery crust, which is filled with a delicate vanilla cream and juicy pears.