Ingredients
- 1 bottle (750ml) red wine (Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon work best)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 lemon
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 5 cardamom pods
- 4 Bosc pears, firm but ripe
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, very cold
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Directions
- Combine the wine, sugar and 1 cup water in a non-reactive saucepan over medium-high heat. Using a paring knife, cut the peel off the lemon into 1-inch strips, taking care to leave as much of the white rind behind as you can. Add the lemon peels to the pan along with the cinnamon and cardamom. Stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat.
- Using a paring knife, remove the skin from the pears, keeping the stem intact (this is just for visual purposes). Cut ¼ inch off the bottom of each pear so that they can stand upright to serve.
- Add the pears to the poaching liquid, on their sides, and return to medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover. Cook until pears are fork tender, basting and flipping every 5 minutes or so, for about 30 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the pears to a bowl, strain the poaching liquid (discard solids) and return the liquid to the pan. Cook until the liquid is reduced to about 1 cup, 15–18 minutes. Pour this sauce over the pears and allow to cool to room temperature.
- Add the cold cream to a standup mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and beat until you have soft peaks. With the motor running, slowly add the sugar and continue to beat until you have stiff peaks.
- To serve, spoon a few tablespoons of the red wine sauce onto a plate, place a pear standing upright on top and add a large dollop of whipped cream on the side.
Note(s):
Pears can be served chilled or at room temperature.
You always want to start with very cold cream when making whipped cream. And if you are whipping by hand, use a metal bowl that has been in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Cold will make the whipping faster and you will have a lighter result.
This is actually a dessert that kids will love. You don’t taste the red wine once it’s been poached and the liquid is reduced to a syrup. It’s very sweet and quite tasty!
You can core the pear using a melon baller and starting at its base, but it’s not necessary. If you do this, cooking time will be significantly less.
You don’t want to use your finest and most expensive wine for this, but don’t use cheap wine either. A good middle of the road wine is best.
