Spiced poached pears with blackberries
Poached pears are such an elegant dish, light enough to enjoy after a heavy main. Avoid overripe pears as they can become mushy and lose their regal shape.
Ingredients
- 1 lemon
- 1 orange
- 750ml/1â…“ pint red wine
- 200g/7oz fresh root ginger
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 whole cloves
- 5 fennel seeds
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 500g/1lb 2oz caster sugar
- 300g/10½oz frozen blackberries
- 8 pears, peeled and cored leaving top stem intact
- thick custard or ice cream, to serve
Method
Using a vegetable peeler, pare the zest from half the orange and the half lemon, then squeeze the juice from each fruit.
In a large saucepan over a medium heat, bring the orange and lemon zest, wine, ginger, spices, herbs, sugar and blackberries to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the liquid into a clean pan and return the cinnamon stick to the strained mixture.
Add the pears and any juices and simmer over a very low heat for about 45 minutes, or until the pears are tender, turning once.
Lift the pears carefully from the liquid and set aside. Simmer the sauce until the volume of liquid is reduced by two-thirds, then strain through a fine sieve.
The pears can be eaten warm or at room temperature. Pour the sauce over the pears and serve alongside custard or ice cream.
Recipe Tips
A fruity red wine is best for poaching pears. If you don't want to use wine, use a sugar syrup made by dissolving 300g/10½oz caster sugar in 1 litre/1¾ pint water with lemon zest and a split vanilla pod.