Poached Pears in Amaretto Crème
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Feel free to add more pears to this bath of sweetened wine if you have more guests. I use bosc, but most any pear will work. Be sure to find pears of equal size and shape.
Recipe by:
Serves: 8
Ingredients
Poached Pears
  • 1.5 liter bottle of red wine, such as pinot noir
  • 2 cups pomegranate juice
  • ½ cup honey
  • ½ cup sugarcane syrup
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon ground allspice
  • 1 tablespoon ground whole cloves
  • 8 pears, ripe but firm
Amaretto Crème
  • 4 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 cup almond-flavored liqueur, such as Amaretto
  • 1 cup chopped almonds
  • ½ cup mint leaves
Instructions
Poached Pears
  1. Peel the pears, but leave the stem intact. Cut the bottom of each pear so that it will stand on end.
  2. In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the wine and all the ingredients except the pears. While stirring, bring to a boil and immediately turn the heat down to a simmer. Add the pears and let cook until softened so that a bamboo skewer can slide easily into the center. Watch carefully as the time will vary with the ripeness of your pears, but no more than 20 minutes should be sufficient. Remove the pears and let the liquid cool to room temperature. In the same pot or in a container with a lid, submerge the pears so that all of the pear is covered in the wine-infused liquid. Cover, refrigerate and chill before serving.
Amaretto Crème
  1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, add the cream and slowly bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the amaretto. Stir the mixture and reduce by half. Add half of the chopped almonds to the sauce and stir. Remove from the heat and let come to room temperature before serving.
  2. For serving, pour the sauce onto a serving platter. Position the pears in the sauce standing on end with stem side up. Sprinkle the remaining chopped almonds around the platter and garnish with mint leaves. All guests can serve themselves by taking a pear from the platter and spooning on as much sauce as they like. Serve this dessert with a chilled sparkling wine.
Notes
Don’t break the bank. Use a decent, yet economical, 1.5 liter bottle of Pinot noir. After all, you will be infusing it with multiple flavors and sweeteners.
Recipe by Acadiana Table at https://acadianatable.com/?p=6667