Poached pears in red and white wine
by:
We had a big pear tree in our garden in Corgeno and, in the season, we had pears coming out of our ears, so my grandmother often used to poach them in wine. We add some spices and, when we serve them, we go to town a bit, building up different flavors and textures to set off the fruit, with various sorbets and ice creams and cookies. However, you can serve the pears very simply with vanilla ice cream, and, if you like, some sweet biscuits, such as Sable.
ingredients
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serves: 4
4 medium-sized ripe pears
1 1/4 cups white wine
1/2 cup superfine sugar
2 cloves
2 cardamom pods
1 1/4 cups red wine
1 stick cinnamon
1 star anise
To serve (optional):
Vanilla ice cream and cookies (such as sable)
Or:
Frangipane wafers (in rounds)
Frangipane wafers (twisted into balls)
Mascarpone ice cream
Cinnamon ice cream
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount per Serving
Calories: 296
- Total Fat: 0.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
- Sodium: 9.3 mg
- Total Carbs: 48.6 g
- Dietary Fiber: 6.4 g
- Sugars: 33.5 g
- Protein: 1.2 g
preparation
1. Peel the pears and cut them in half, remove the cores, then cut each half lengthwise into thirds.
2. Put half the pear pieces in a pan with the white wine, half the sugar, the cloves and cardamon pods. Put the rest of the pear pieces in another pan with the red wine, the rest of the sugar, the cinnamon and star anise.
3. Heat both pans very, very slowly on as low a heat as possible for around 10 minutes — the wine shouldn't even reach a simmer, as you want to cook the pears through, without their falling apart. When the wine begins to get hot, test the pears with a sharp knife. If it slides into the pears easily, they are ready. Take off the heat and leave to cool.
4. Lift out the pears (keeping them separate), then boil up each liquid separately (to 250°F, if you have a thermometer) and reduce to a thick syrup — remembering that it will thicken more when it is cold. To check if it is the right consistency, put a spoonful on top of a piece of marble or a cold plate — within seconds it will be cold. If it is watery, it needs to be boiled for a little longer, but if it spreads a little but holds its shape, it is ready.
5. Serve 3 pieces of each type of poached pear in each bowl, with vanilla ice cream, drizzled with the two different colored syrups, and cookies. Or, if you want to he more elaborate, arrange the two pears separately on plates, drizzled with their respective sauces, together with 2 rounds of frangipane wafers on each plate. Top one cookie with mascarpone ice cream, the other with cinnamon ice cream, and garnish with frangipane wafers.
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