Pre-bake the tart crust (See Sweet Tart Crust Recipe)

Add sugar, salt, peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon stick and bay leaf to a saucepan. Slit the ½ or whole vanilla bean in half lengthwise, scrape the seeds from the pod and add both seeds and pod to the saucepan. Add the wine and lemon juice and heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved.

Meanwhile, halve the pears, then core, and peel. Leave the stem attached to one of the halves of each pear for aesthetic effect.

Add the pears to the wine, cover, and gently simmer on low heat for 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the ripeness and quality of the pears. The pears are ready when they give little resistance when tested with a toothpick. (Remember pears will keep cooking as they cool, so don't cook until completely soft.) Occasionally, turn the pears in their liquid gently with a wooden spoon. To avoid discoloration, keep the pears fully submerged. Cool the pears in their liquid until cool enough to handle.

Before making the almond cream, make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature. (See Almond Cream Recipe)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C)

Spread almond cream in tart shell (or puff pastry).

Slice & fan out pears: Set pears cut-side down on paper towels. With a pairing knife, starting a half inch from the top, slice the pear into ¼" (6mm) thick strips. Repeat the process on up to 4 halves. (Sometimes only 3 fanned-halves will fit on the tart.)

Place a sliced pear halve on a large metal spatula and delicately fan the pear open. Then, slide the fanned pear carefully onto the almond cream, with its stem close to the center of the tart. Repeat, arranging each fan so that most, but not all, of the almond cream is covered.

Bake: Place tart on baking sheet and bake until almond cream is golden and firm to the touch, about 45 minutes. Halfway through baking time, rotate tart in oven. Cool on wire rack about 10 minutes before glazing.

Glaze tart: (optional)Heat jam or jelly over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until liquid, about 3-4 minutes. Immediately while hot, brush or dab on the pears to lightly coat. If using jam with fruit pieces, strain through a fine sieve first. If too thick to work with, thin by stirring in a drop or two of water (or rum, triple sec or Grand Marnier).

To Serve: Dust with powdered sugar around the edges.Enjoy tart warm or at room temperature the day of, then store in refrigerator and enjoy within 3 days.