Pear, chocolate and almond tart recipe

• 20 g (0.7oz) cocoa powder
• 170 g (6oz) plain flour
• 1 small pinch of salt
• 140 g (4.9oz) cold butter, diced
• 1 medium egg
• 5 Williams pears
• 1 l (1.8pints) water
• 300 g (10.6oz) caster sugar
• 1 vanilla pod (opened and scraped)

1. Prepare and poach the pears.
2. This step can be done the day before.
3. Sift the cocoa powder with the flour and make the sweet pastry (see link for sweet pastry method above).
4. Rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
5. Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3.
6. Line the tart tin with the pastry and return it to the fridge for 30 minutes.
7. Blind bake the pastry base for 3540 minutes.
8. For the chocolate and almond cream, make an almond cream following the method on page 30.
9. Melt the chocolate and 80g of butter in the microwave at a medium power, stirring every 30 seconds until its melted, then incorporate it into the almond cream using a spatula.
10. When the pastry base has cooled, spread evenly with the chocolate almond cream.
11. Garnish the tart with the poached pear halves and bake it for 35-45 minutes until the chocolate almond cream is set and cooked.
12. Cool at room temperature in the tin.

cocoa, flour, salt, cold butter, egg, pears, l, caster sugar, vanilla

Taken from www.lovefood.com/guide/recipes/26488/pear-chocolate-and-almond-tart-recipe (may not work)