When we think of dessert, we usually think of more of the traditional variety like cakes, cookies, and pies. And when we think of dessert, we rarely ever think about poached fruit. In my family, poached fruit was kind of a big deal growing up. Poached apples with grapes and hints of cinnamon and honey. Poached quince with rose water. Poached grapefruit with sugared cherries. It's been a staple of family dinner parties and the cure to many many illnesses (it's must have been the cinnamon). So, on a whim, I decided to poach my own poached fruit for a dinner party I hosted this weekend.
I picked up some ripe yet firm pears. I pulled out nutmeg and cinnamon sticks from my spice cabinet as well as no-sugar vanilla syrup, apple cider and red wine. It's very much like making mulled wine. After I washed the pears, I put them in a pot and added the wine and apple cider - just enough to cover them. (Don't add more water than necessary.) I threw in a few sticks of cinnamon, sprinkling of nutmeg, a dash of the vanilla and a bag of chai tea (for infusion of the ginger & cloves). On medium, I let it stew, turning the pears every 15 minutes or so, until tender. The key is NOT to over boil and have pureed pears. Just keep your eye on them. Poke them with the knife to see if they are done. It should take about 25-30 minutes but like I said, eyes on the pears.
The smell that surrounded the kitchen was incredible. It was so aromatic that it moved hungry husband from the basement to come up and ask, "what are you making?" He wasn't convinced of the answer until he tried the dessert. After the poaching process (which basically means: boiling lightly in water), I let the pears cool down. I served half a pear on a plate topped with chocolate & vanilla frozen yogurt (you can use ice cream of course) and a cinnamon cookie. I added a small spoon of the liquid around the pear but next time, I'll boil the liquid with sugar to make it a tad thicker.
Oh my dear... oh my dear! Full of flavor. The silky pear was infused with just the right amount of sugar (from the vanilla syrup and the ice cream.) It was really really good and bonus: healthy! I highly recommend you give this a try. There are thousands of recipes on-line that you can check out but be adventurous and come up with your own version. It's so elegant and sophisticated yet simple and drama-free. That's right chocolate cake, I'm talking to you!!!
Enjoy!
F2
