A right pear

The pears arrived, hard as meteorites, risking dental appointments for the children. A few days later, after sitting in a bowl, one had turned to a mould-spotted mush and the others were looking suspicious.Never mind. A little scraping and carving here and there rendered them perfect for a tart, and a few eggs, some flour and sugar mixed with almond syrup and butter later, I was pouring the mixture into a prepared puff pastry case.The classic pear tart, or even the frangipane version will keep and make me very happy. This combined the two, more really down to me wanting to use up ingredients that needed using than by design. And the result was simple, fairly quick, and definitely very tasty.  Finish off with toasted and flaked almonds if you like. I didn't because I forgot.Ingredients300g puff pastry (I had the half of a homemade block in the freezer, well worthwhile)2 pears, cored100g sugar100g butter100g flour2 eggs6 cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground1tbsp orgeat syrup1tbsp almond butterIcing sugar to dustMethodHeat the oven to 180c, gas mark 5.Heat a pan and add the pears. Throw in a good amount of butter and about a handful of sugar getting the pears well covered and add in the cardamom . Cook on a fairly high heat for about five minutes, until they're nicely caramelised.Grease and flour a 20cm tin then line it with the pastry.Line that with baking parchment and fill with baking beans and blind bake for 15 minutes.Remove from the oven, take out the beans and paper and trim the pastry edge. Poke the base all over with a fork and put back in the oven for ten minutes, turning once to keep the cooking even.Remove from the oven while you make the filling.In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar then mix in the eggs. Beat until combined then slowly add the flour, mixing well until fully combined. Add in the syrup and butter and mix well.Fill the tart case and place the pears on top.Bake in the oven for twenty minutes, then turn once and bake for a further fifteen minutes until the cake is set but still moist.Leave to cool a little and dust with icing sugar. This is best eaten slightly warm.

Here's Some Carrot Cake

The carrots are past their best. No longer firm and snappable, they bend like a theatrical prop. No wonder really, they have been sat outside in the sun on the table for a day and a half. I'd forgotten about them among the tumbling bags of vegetables I'd brought back.Still, that doesn't mean there isn't a use for them. A few made it into my morning smoothie and the rest, determined to make something with them, I turned into cake. Surely bendy and tired fruit becoming cake is like turning base metal into gold. And not only that, I used coconut sugar in the mix rather than cane. So it's almost doubly less healthy. If you don't count the icing sugar mountain that went into the cream cheese icing.As a cake is a treat, let's not beet (sugar) ourselves up about things being unhealthy. It's not as if I had a slice of it for breakfast the other day... But this cake is delicious, moist and with the fragrant scent of orange blossom and clementine zest, is a wonderful moment of calm with a coffee or tea mid-afternoon when spirits are flagging.If you don't hoover the lot up in one sitting (assuming you're sharing) it keeps soft and moist for what seems an eternity as long as you keep it covered. I can't see that happening though.Ingredients225g coconut sugar (or caster sugar if not)225g butter225g self-raising flour with 1tsp baking powder mixed in3 eggs200g grated carrots1tbsp orange blossom waterFor the cream cheese icing175g cream cheese125g soft butter350g icing sugar1tbsp vanilla extractClementine zest and chopped hazelnuts to decorateMethodCream together the butter and sugar. Beat in one egg at a time until well mixed then stir in the flour and baking powder little by little until you've used it all. Try not to over mix it.Stir in the orange blossom water and carrots and mix well, but gently. Divide between two 19cm prepared cake tins and bake immediately at 180c for approximately 40 minutes.Leave the cake to cool completely or it'll be sliding all over the place like a plastic fire guard. Beat together the butter, cheese, icing sugar and vanilla until soft and smooth. sandwich the cakes together with a good load of the icing then coat the top and sprinkle over the zest and nuts. Chill for about half an hour if it's a hot day to give the icing a fighting chance then serve.