Pear Drops

Instructions

1. Brush a marble slab or a small shallow baking tray with 1 tsp of flavourless oil, and oil a palette knife and a sharp pair of kitchen scissors as well. Set out a sugar thermometer, a pastry brush in a cup of water, and two small heatproof bowls warmed in hot water. Boiled sugar moves fast, so everything must be ready before you start.
2. Put 200 g of granulated sugar, 50 g of liquid glucose, 75 ml of water and 0.25 tsp of cream of tartar into a small heavy-based pan. Set over a low heat and stir gently with a metal spoon only until the sugar has completely dissolved and the syrup is clear, about 4 minutes. Brush any crystals from the sides of the pan with the wet pastry brush.
3. Raise the heat to bring the syrup to a full rolling boil and stop stirring altogether. Clip in the thermometer and boil for 10-12 minutes until it reads 150C, the hard crack stage; the bubbles will have grown thick and slow and the syrup should stay pale straw at most. A drop spooned into cold water should set brittle and snap cleanly.