Glazed Pear Tarts

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured bench to a 1⁄2 cm thickness. Peel the pears, cut in half and scoop out the cores with a melon baller or teaspoon.

Use a small, sharp knife to cut the pears into a fan. Start from the stalk end and slice the pear downwards, on an angle, into thin slices. You want the slices still attached to the stalk.

Place the pears on the pastry and cut around them leaving a 1 cm border all the way around. Lift off the pears and place the pastry on a baking tray lined with a teflon sheet or baking paper. Combine the egg yolk and the water and brush over the pastry. Score a 1⁄2 cm border around the edge of each piece. Sprinkle the biscuits inside the border and lay the pears back on top.

Brush the pears with butter and sprinkle over the combined sugar and cinnamon. If the pastry is getting soft, refrigerate until firm.

Bake 25-30 minutes or until the pastry is golden and the bottoms are crisp. Heat the jam and brush onto the tarts as soon as they come out of the oven. Transfer to a cooling rack.

To serve: Arrange the tarts on a serving plate and dust lightly with icing sugar. Serve with softly whipped cream. 

* use any biscuit, plain or fancy, with or without chocolate.