Pear and Almond Tart

This tart is moist from the almond filling, crispy round the edges from the pastry and succulent in the centre with the pears. With my very simple recipe you could have this knocked up within an hour... Give it a go... It's definitely worth it!

Ingredients

500g of Shortcrust pastry
100g Soft butter
100g Caster sugar
100g Ground almonds
3 tbsp Plain flour
1 egg
1 Tin of pears
1 tsp Icing sugar

Recipe

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C /  Fan 160C.

2. Unravel the ready-rolled pastry and use it to line a flan tin. Roll it out a touch more, if necessary, to fit in perfectly. 

3. Try and get the pastry right into the fluted edges of the tin. You can use a wooden spoon handle dipped in some flour to ease the pastry into the ‘flutes’. Cut off the excess pastry with a sharp knife and then sit the tin on a baking sheet and pop in the fridge to harden up a bit while you prepare the filling.

4. Mix the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl either by hand or using a hand-held electric whisk (or in a freestanding electric mixer) until it is really soft and well combined. Then beat in the ground almonds and plain flour.

5. Crack the egg in and then beat it hard so everything is combined. Remove the lined tin from the fridge and add the almond filling, spreading it out evenly so it is nice and smooth on top.

6. Drain the tinned pears well in a colander and then on kitchen paper. Score them horizontally as the picture shows.

7. Arrange the pear halves, cut side down, in the almond filling.

8. Bake in the oven for 35-45 minutes or until the filling is nicely puffed up and golden.

9. Decorate with icing sugar and then ... dig in!!!!