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A Quick Elegant Dessert: Seckel Pears Poached in Zinfandel
As I meandered through the aisles of my favorite health foods store, I saw what looked like your average pear except shrunken down to a miniature size. My eyes widened with childhood fascination and as a curious kid does, I grabbed the pint-sized pear and took a closer look.
Turns out it was a Seckel pear, a tiny, red and green fruit with a sweet flavor. The Seckel's sweet flesh makes it the perfect choice for this dish, though make sure it's cooked through before you serve it.
It's recommended that you poach pears in a Shiraz, Syrah, or Zinfandel. And since we have many a bottle of Zinfandel conveniently leftover from a recent housewarming party, I chose it.
INGREDIENTS
| Juice of 1 lemon | |
| 6 | firm but ripe Seckel pears (with stems intact) |
| 1 bottle red wine, I used Zinfandel | |
| 1 3/4 cups | sugar |
| 1 tbsp | vanilla |
| 1 whole | clove |
| 1 tsp | cinnamon |
PREPARATION:
Method
- Peel the pears carefully leaving the stems intact. Add lemon juice to a small bowl of water and dip each pear in after peeling.
- Add wine, sugar, vanilla, clove, and cinnamon to a large bowl and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer. Add pears back in and cook until the sugar dissolves, about 25 minutes. Make sure each pear is completely soft before you're done cooking.
- Serve with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream or top with honey. These last in the fridge for 3 days.
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