Poached Pears With Cheddar Recipes

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine lemon zest, cinnamon stick, allspice, ground pepper, apple cider, and water.
• Add pears. Cover with waxed paper to prevent discoloring. Bring to a simmer. Cook, turning pears occasionally, until easily pierced with the tip of a paring knife, but not falling apart, about 20 minutes. Remove pears from liquid; transfer to large bowl.
• Raise heat to high; boil cider mixture until reduced to a syrup, about 15 minutes. Discard cinnamon. Pour syrup over pears; refrigerate. To serve, slice off a sliver from the bottom of each pear (so it stands upright). Serve pears with lemon sorbet, if desired.

Steps:

• To poach the pears, bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from the heat and add the ginger and black tea bags; let steep 10 minutes. Squeeze the bags against the side of the pan, then discard them. Stir in the sugar, honey, peppercorns, ginger and lemon peel and bring to a simmer. Add the pears and additional water to cover the pears, if needed. Simmer, turning the pears occasionally, until just tender all the way through, 20 to 22 minutes. Let cool in the liquid. Halve and core the pears and pat dry. Slice the pears into 1/4-inch slices. (You'll get 6 or 7 slices from each pear.)
• Heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Unroll the pie crust on a floured work surface and roll to a 14-inch circle. Center on a parchment-lined baking sheet (it's OK if it overhangs at this point). Spread the leeks on the crust in a 9-inch circle. Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Top with the pears in a spiral. Fold over and pleat the edges of the dough, leaving the center of the galette open. Brush the dough with the beaten egg.
• Bake the galette until the juices are bubbling and the pastry is golden brown and crisp, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove to a baking rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with the chives, if using.

Steps:

• In a saucepan large enough to hold all the pears, combine the wine, Simple Syrup, cinnamon stick halves, honey, and ginger. Scrape in the seeds from the vanilla bean and add the bean and seeds to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until the honey has melted. Add the pears and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally, until the pears are tender. Remove the pears from the liquid and allow to cool.
• Continue to simmer the liquid until it thickens and is reduced by half, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Remove the cinnamon stick halves and the vanilla bean and discard.
• Place each pear on a small serving plate with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Drizzle with the honey, ginger and cinnamon syrup. Serve immediately.
• In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the syrup to cool.

Steps:

• In a pan big enough to hold the pears snugly, tip in all the ingredients except the pears. Half fill the pan with water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 mins to infuse, drop in pears, cover and gently poach for about 30 mins until soft. Turn off the heat and set aside. The pears can be poached up to 2 days ahead and kept in the poaching syrup in the fridge.
• To make the chocolate sauce, tip the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. Bring the cream, milk and cinnamon to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted. To serve, drain the pears and, holding them by the stem, dip them in the chocolate sauce to completely cover. Serve each pear with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Steps:

• Before you start, cut out a circle of baking parchment using a large pan as a template. (This is called a cartouche, and will cover the pears later - it should be the same size as the pan to keep the pears submerged and the liquid from evaporating too quickly). Set aside. Tip the sugar, cinnamon sticks, vanilla seeds and pod, cardamom, wine and 200ml water into the pan. Peel strips of the lemon zest, avoiding the pith. Drop in the strips of zest, then warm over a low heat until the mix is steaming and the sugar has dissolved.
• Peel the pears, leaving the stalks intact. Slice in half lengthways through the core, then use a melon baller or small, sharp knife to remove the hard core and pips. Carefully place the pears in the steaming liquid, then turn up the heat to medium- low and bring to a simmer. Cover the surface with the circle of baking parchment and cook the pears for 20-30 mins, or until they can be pierced with the tip of a knife with little resistance.
• Meanwhile, sterilise two 1-litre jam jars. When the pears are cooked and still hot, transfer to the jars with any aromatics from the pan. Top up with the poaching liquid so the pears are covered. Seal and leave to cool. Will keep for up to six months in a cool place. Serve with ice cream or hot chocolate sauce, if you like.