TO MAKE THE RICH SHORTCRUST PASTRY:

Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). You will need a 23cm (9 inch) pie dish.

In a large mixing bowl, rub the butter into the flour with your hands until you have what resembles fine crumbs. Stir in the sugar, almond extract (optional) and egg yolk.

Now add the ice water and mix until the pastry comes together and can be formed into a ball. You don’t want it too wet or too dry, so add extra flour or water accordingly. 

Place the ball of pastry into a sealable plastic bag and let it rest in the fridge for 20 minutes. Roll the pastry out on a clean, floured surface. You want it to be about 2mm thick. 

Line your pie dish with the pastry then place a piece of wax proof paper over the pastry and weight it down with some rice or raw beans. Bake the pastry for 10 - 12 minutes, remove the paper and bake for another 5 minutes until light golden. Remove from the oven and set aside.

TO MAKE THE FILLING:

Place the pears in a medium saucepan with enough water to almost cover the pears, and gently simmer for 15 minutes until tender, drain and dry the pears with kitchen paper.

Melt butter, brown sugar and syrup in a saucepan until no granules remain, then boil for 2mins. Pour in 100ml cream and simmer for 4 mins. Add remaining cream, stir and remove from the heat. Cool for 12mins before beating in the eggs and pecans.

Spoon the mixture into the baked pastry case, add the pears in a circle design (fat side at the edges, thin side to the middle). Bake for 30 mins until the top looks set, but still a little wobbly. Cool for at least 20mins before serving.

Serve with whipped cream or ice-cream and enjoy!