Friday, November 12, 2010

Red Wine Poached Pears

There's still time to enter my giveaway.
Poaching is a cooking technique I rarely use. Poach - to cook food gently in liquid just past the boiling point. Do you have a favorite recipe using this technique?

Pears poached in red wine are so beautiful! With all of the pumpkin and apple recipes flooding the blogsphere, it's a nice change. This is an easy, yet elegant dessert. It can be served along with whipped cream, creme fraiche, mascarpone or even vanilla ice cream.



Red Wine Poached Pears

6 medium sized firm pears (Bosc pears work well for this recipe)
2 cups red wine
1/4 cup lemon juice
2/3 cup sugar
4 - 5 peppercorns
cinnamon stick
pinch of nutmeg

Select a sauce pan which just holds all of the pears lying on their sides.
Mix the red wine, lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and nutmeg in the sauce pan. Place on medium heat and bring to a very low boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar.
Meanwhile peel the pears. For a pretty presentation, leave the stem on and cut a thin slice off the bottom of the fruit so it will stand upright when served.
Place the pears in the simmering wine sauce and cook for about 25 minutes, or until the pears are tender but not mushy. Turn them over 1/2 way through cooking time.
Carefully remove the pears when they are done. Reduce remaining sauce by boiling it for about 7 minutes or until until it is thick and syrupy. Place the pears as you are intending to serve them and spoon sauce on top.
Poached pears are perhaps best served at room temperature, but you can keep them in the refrigerator and serve cold.
Serves 6

I am linking this to Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum.

6 comments:

  1. What a beautiful dessert! Easy and delicious, fits my criteria!

    ReplyDelete
  2. My, those wine-poached pears are beautiful!
    Actually, my favorite thing to poach are pears. I poach enough to fill a few large jars-full...so I can eat them after pear season is over.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I saw Jacques Pépin do these on TV;you make it sound easy; looks wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  4. These are pretty. I'm up for anything with wine at the moment! Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love poached pears and always forget to make them! A restaurant we used to love to go to would serve red wine poached pears over date nut bread with Stilton cheese. What an amazing combination!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting on my blog!

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.