Poached Pears
CATEGORIES
INGREDIENTS
- Servings: 6
- 6 Bosc pears
- 1 orange, juiced and pared zest
- 1 2/3 cups of Sauvignon Blanc
- 3 cups water
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 cup sugar
- juice from 2 lemons (my lemons were tiny..like...lime size so I used 4 lemons)
- 1 vanilla pod, split
- 1 cinnamon stick, broken into short lengths
- 4 cloves
DIRECTIONS
- With a little knife, score a zigzag pattern in the skin around the top of each pear. Peal the skin off the body of the pear, leaving the zigzag pattern along the top, kinda like a collar, leaving the stem in tack
- You want to be careful when peeling....so you can preserve the pears shape as much as possible
- Remove the core from the bottom of each pear.
- Cut the orange zest into strips. Now....this was new to me. Every time I've zested an orange...it was with a grater. This process required me to sorta gently cut the zest away without the white stuff. So I used a knife and thinly "peeled" the orange. I ended up with some pith still attached but not too much.
- Combine everything in a large pot
- Over a medium heat, bring liquid to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer until pears are done. Which I think would mean, tender yet firm. The time frame can vary, depending on ripeness...5 - 15 minutes.
- Since bosc pears are general a very firm pear (which is why I chose them for this recipe) I let them cook a bit longer.
- With a large slotted spoon, remove the pears and place in a bowl. Remove all the seasonings and discard. At this point, I allowed the liquid to simmer a bit longer to get more of a syrup consistency which didn't happen.....I was afraid the flavors would end up...I dunno...overcooked. Have you ever smelled cinnamon and citrus that's overcooked? Maybe in a potpourri? Well, i didn't want my syrup to taste like that.
- Pour "syrup" over the pears and set aside until ready to serve