Pear & Brandy Tarte Tatin

On Monday evening I went to bed, as every evening, sheltered by the security of feeling at home. I have been quite busy at work, so I fell asleep thinking in all the stuff I would need to deal with in the morning. Before going to bed, I carefully prepared my bag, the boys bags, lunch boxes, documents, laptop, mobile and everything we needed the following morning.

When I woke up on Wednesday morning, I was no longer the owner of any of those things.

I also was no longer in possession of my driving licence, my passport, my cards, all of my digital photos and songs, my home keys and that amazing My Neibour Totoro pencil case that I loved. 

Someone broke through my back patio door, came into my living room and stole my stuff. We were there. Upstairs. Whilst he was in my home. There are lots of "what if´s" I don´t want to think about.

There's nothing that prepares you for this. Burglary is a scenario you don't think about because until it happens to you, it's something that only happens to other people. 

The worse thing about this is not that a lovely summery day that started with me singing in the shower ended up being rubbish just at 8 am; is not that I completely lost a day of my life cancelling cards, mobile numbers and changing passwords; is not the fact that I spend hours answering neverending questions from the police.

The worst thing about being burgled is how unsettling is to see your safe home violated. 

This week´s recipe is just something nice I prepared to cheer me up after it all happened. A nice cake that made me feel a bit better almost instantly.

WHAT YOU NEED

4 Pears, ripen 

40gr Butter

60gr Golden Sugar

1 Glass of Brandy

A Bunch of Fresh Mint

1 Shortcrust Pastry Roll

Dark Cooking Chocolate

WHAT YOU DO

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Wash, core and peel the pears. Cut in halves. 

In a deep pan, put the pears with the butter, sugar and mint. Cook to medium heat unitl the pears are golden brown. Then add the brandy and and flambé for 1-2 minutes until the flames die down. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Unroll the pastry.

Put the pears in a tarte tin and carefully put the pastry over the pears, pressing down the sides to ensure it goes to the edge. Prick all over with a fork, brush with beaten egg and bake for 20-30 minutes or until puffed up and golden.

Cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan, then run a sharp knife between the pastry and the edge, place a serving plate over the top and invert the pan.

Decorate with fresh mint and serve warm. Garnish with vanilla ice cream is highly recommended!