Red Wine Poached Pears

50 min · Easy · Serves 2

470 kcal per serving · 6g protein

Whole pears simmered in red wine with sugar, cinnamon, allspice and orange until they turn a deep ruby red, then served with the wine boiled down to a glossy syrup. Thick Greek yogurt and walnuts balance the sweetness. It looks like a restaurant dessert but needs only one small saucepan.

Open in Mixit →

Ingredients

Method

  1. Peel the orange and squeeze the juice

    Peel wide strips of skin from the orange with a vegetable peeler, then squeeze the juice from the orange.

  2. Warm the spiced wine

    Pour the red wine and water into a small, deep saucepan, add the sugar, cinnamon stick, allspice berries, orange peel and orange juice, and heat over medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring, until the sugar dissolves.

  3. Peel the pears

    Peel the pears with a vegetable peeler, leaving the stalks on, and cut a thin slice off the bottom of each pear so the pear can stand up.

  4. Poach the pears

    Lay the pears in the hot wine and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes, turning the pears every 5 minutes, until a thin knife slides into the thickest part without resistance.

  5. Reduce the wine to a syrup

    Lift the pears onto a plate with a slotted spoon, then boil the wine over high heat for 12 minutes, until reduced by about two-thirds to a glossy syrup that coats a spoon.

  6. Take out the spices and glaze the pears

    Remove the cinnamon stick, allspice berries and orange peel from the syrup with a spoon, then return the pears to the pan and turn the pears in the syrup to glaze.

  7. Serve with yogurt and walnuts

    Stand each pear in a shallow bowl, spoon the syrup over the pear and serve with a spoon of Greek yogurt and the chopped walnuts scattered on top.

Open in Mixit →

More to cook