PREPARATION
Cut the vanilla bean open lengthwise and scratch out the vanilla paste. Place the paste into the milk and bring the milk to high heat. Remove the milk from the burner and let it cool down. Now separate the eggs and whisk the yolks into foam in a bowl. Add the flower and the potato starch to this mixture by running it through a sieve. Blend them into the mass. Slowly stir the lukewarm milk into the egg cream. Remove the vanilla bean and place the cream into a double boiler. At low heat, whisk the cream until it is stiff. Pour the vanilla cream into heat resistant serving dishes. Wash and peel the pears, cut them into halves and then into slices; drizzle with lemon juice. Distribute the pear slices across the vanilla cream servings and bake the gratin in the oven for 15 minutes at 200° C. Place the apricot jam into a separate glass container and serve alongside the warm pear-vanilla gratin.