Pie Filling:

6 ripe Bosc, Anjou or Comice pears
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 tbsp. cornstarch

Crust:
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
Dash salt
5 tbsp. cold unsalted butter
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tbsp. water
1 large egg, beaten

Rum Raisin Sauce:
1/3 cup raisins
1/4 cup dark rum
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tbsp. butter
2 tsp. cornstarch

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Peel and core the pears and slice them into bite-size pieces. Drop them into a 1-1/2 quart baking dish and mix in the sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract and cornstarch.

Step 2
To make the crust: Mix the flour, cloves and salt in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into small bits and work it into the flour with your fingers or a pastry cutter until it resembles coarse meal. Pour in the oil, stir and sprinkle on the water. Work the mixture until you can gather it in a ball, then knead the dough 2 or 3 times to blend.

Step 3
Roll the dough on a floured surface into a circle large enough to cover the pear mixture. Drape it over the pears, cut a vent in the center, and brush the crust with the beaten egg.

Step 4
Bake 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees. (Prepare Rum Raisin Sauce - Step 5). Cook 40 minutes longer, or until the crust is a nice golden brown. Cool on a rack and serve warm. 

Step 5
While the pie is baking, prepare the rum raisin sauce. Combine raisins and rum in a small bowl and let stand 20 minutes. In a small saucepan, over medium heat, combine sugar and 1/4 cup water and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 5 minutes and remove from heat. Stir in rum and raisin mixture, orange juice, butter and cornstarch. Return mixture to heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Remove from heat and cool until warm. Spoon over slightly cooled pie.