Marsala Poached Pears Recipe

Yield: Makes 4 servings.

Firm, just ripe pears should be used. If overly ripe, the pears will cook up mushy. If Bosc pears are not available, Bartlett or Anjou can be substituted. You can core the pears if you wish, from the bottom, but it really is not necessary.

Ingredients 4 bosc pears, peeled, stem still attached, 1/4-inch of bottom sliced off so pears can easily sit upright 1 cup dry Marsala wine(or Madeira) 1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice 1/3 cup white sugar 1/2 star anise 4 cloves 1/2 stick cinnamon

Method

1 In a saucepan just large enough to fit all of the pears, place the Marsala wine, sugar, lemon juice, star anise, cloves, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium and place the pears in the pan, standing upright. Cover the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes (if you want, baste with the liquid a couple of times during the cooking), until the pears can easily be pierced with a fork. Very firm pears make need to cook for up to 20 minutes.

2 Remove the pears to a serving dish. Keeping the pan uncovered, let the Marsala syrup boil down for a few minutes until it is a thick syrup. (If it begins to caramelize, remove pan from the heat and add a little water to the pan to stop the cooking.) Pour syrup over pears and serve.

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Links:
Poached pears in balsamic reduction
Poached pears in vanillafrom Lydia of The Perfect Pantry
Try poaching pears with Italian Lambrusco, a favorite of our local Sacramento chef Biba.