What you'll need

Makes 24

  • 3 cups almond meal (ground almonds)
  • 2 cups pure icing sugar, sifted
  • 2 eggwhites
  • 1 large orange, rind finely grated
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond essence
  • 24 cloves

The easy bit

  1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Line 2 flat baking trays with baking paper.
  2. Combine almond meal and 1/2 cup icing sugar in a bowl. Make a well in the centre. Add eggwhites, orange rind and almond essence. Using your hands, mix until dough comes together in a smooth ball. Roll walnut-sized pieces of mixture into 24 small pear shapes. Insert 1 clove (stem side up) into top of each pear.
  3. Place almond pears upright, 5cm apart, on prepared trays. Bake, 1 tray at a time, on lowest shelf in oven for 20 minutes or until firm to touch. Place remaining 1 1/2 cups icing sugar in a deep, small bowl. Dip hot almond pears, 1 at a time, into icing sugar and turn to coat. Return almond pears to warm tray.
  4. Dust heavily with remaining icing sugar. Allow to cool on trays.