Ensure the ingredients are at room temperature. Beat the butter with the sugar in a mixer until it turns white and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, then the brandy and vanilla, beating after each addition. Stop beating and add the flour (mixed with the baking powder) in 2-3 batches, gently kneading with your fingers until you have a soft, fluffy dough like that of a kourabiedes. Avoid over-kneading to keep it from becoming tough.

Butter and flour a 10-inch (25 cm) tart pan or baking dish, and spread 2/3 of the dough inside, covering the sides up to 1.5 - 2 cm high. Spread the jam over the dough.

Shape the remaining 1/3 of the dough into ropes and decorate the surface.

Bake the pasta flora in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for 30-35 minutes until the dough is lightly golden. It can be stored uncovered, outside the refrigerator for a week. It keeps very well outside the refrigerator under a cake dome.

Alternatively, for a playful touch, instead of ropes, you can cut the dough with cookie cutters to decorate the surface, or use the same crunchy dough to make chocolate portholes with a sea of praline in the center and chocolate chips around. In any case, it's perfect! Good luck!