tried it twice. could do without the pears. it unbalances the flvours

I made this tart twice: once with Julia Child's pâte brisée for the crust, and the pears quartered, and once with the crust from Jamie's Toffee Apple Tart, also on Cookstr, and the pears sliced lengthwise and fanned out.

I changed the slicing of the pears the second time because they were much too thick to cook through when quartered, did not look very attractive, and were impossible to slice into while serving. If you really mean to serve exactly six people, the last point won't be a problem, but the pears were certainly prettier when sliced and fanned, and I didn't have to overbake the rest of the tart in order to soften them. The chocolate in the filling becomes slightly scorched after 45 minutes; with sliced pears, you can cut that time down and perhaps avoid the problem.

Either way, the tart comes out looking a bit parched. Brushing the pears with butter while they're still warm helps, but I think a glaze of heated, strained jam would be even better.

When I used the pastry from the Toffee Apple Tart, it required about 20 minutes' blind baking, not 10.

Didn't like creme fraiche with it. Plain whipped cream would be better, I think.