I am always looking for new recipes to make in my classes and we made these Citrus Spiced Poached Pears in a recent World Tapas class. These are Moroccan inspired and they are super easy to make, we presented them with vanilla ice cream and they were a hit!
Making pears for dessert is great - when I worked at DiVino Wine Studio we had some balsamic roasted pears with whipped goat cheese on the menu and they were always sold out. I’m telling you, pears are underrated and almost never taken into consideration when we’re thinking of dessert ideas, but I’m here to tell you, they are sublime! And especially because they can be made a few days ahead.
This particular recipe starts with making a sugar caramel - while not strictly necessary, this caramel is what gives the pears that lovely golden hue, plus the final sauce has a complex and deep flavour. The spices come through in a subtle way that complements the mild flavour of the pears. It is a very elegant, yet very simple dessert.
Choose whatever pears you have available, but I love using the little Rocha pears. I serve one or two and they look adorable on a plate. Your pears should be ripe but still firm; if pears are too soft, they will become really mushy after poaching, so keep an eye on that. For the small Rocha pears, there is no need to core the centres, but for all other pears, it is best to core. I use a melon baller or a small spoon to do the job.
As I mentioned before, you can make this dessert two or even three days ahead. Store pears and syrup separately and when ready to serve, bring to room temperature or warm up slightly. A dollop of your best vanilla ice cream is delicious if you want to kick things up a notch!
Citrus Spiced Poached Pears
8 pears, ripe but still firm
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups orange juice
1 1/2 cups water
10 green cardamom pods, gently crushed
6 whole cloves
2 small cinnamon sticks
1/4 tsp ground ginger
Vanilla ice cream, optional
Peel pears without removing stems. Trim the bottoms so they can stand upright when serving.
If you prefer, you can halve pears instead, and core the centres with a small spoon or melon baller.
Place sugar in medium sauce pan. Cook over medium high heat, without stirring and tilting pan sideways, until sugar turns to a medium dark caramel, 8-10 minutes.
Carefully pour in the orange juice and water and cover pot to bring to a boil (this will help dissolve the caramel that seizes when you add the liquids). Once caramel has dissolved, add the cinnamon stick, ginger, cardamom and cloves along with the pears.
Bring to a boil once again and then turn heat down to simmer, covered, until the pears are tender but firm, 25-35 minutes depending on the size and ripeness of the pears. Test pears using the tip of a knife - if it goes in easily, they are done.
Remove pears from poaching liquid and increase heat to bring the liquid to a vigorous boil. Cook, uncovered, over high heat until sauce thickens to your liking, 15-20 minutes.
Serve at room temperature or a bit warm; place pears upright on dessert plates. Add a scoop of ice cream if you like and drizzle syrup.
Serves 8.