Pears in Mulled Wine with Dark Chocolate

Sweets and Valentines

Detail of a still life in my kitchen

Poached pears in a red wine and dark chocolate sauce is an elegant dessert for Valentine’s Day. Whether it is a dessert or a valentine, it always seems more meaningful to make it yourself, rather than stopping by the bakery section or the card aisle at your supermarket.

I’ve written this well in advance of Valentine’s Day as pears take so frustratingly long to ripen. The pears that I used in this recipe sat on my sunny window sill for at least ten days. Recently, I have tried ripening them in the refrigerator or in a brown paper bag with an apple, but to little avail. It is also a bit difficult to tell when a pear is truly ripe. For this dessert they should not be overripe. I made sure that these were slightly soft around the stem. I also detected some tiny wrinkles, so I decided that it was time.

After reading through a number of recipes for poached pears I decided to poach mine with the spices and the orange that I use when I mull wine. Most recipes call for the pears to be peeled, but I didn’t want to lose all the lovely color in the skin. Also, I didn’t find it necessary to have the pears standing upright in the pot, as many recipes suggest. I arranged them flesh side down in a large saucepan and basted them while they poached. The mascarpone cream tops off the dessert nicely.

Ingredients

For the Pears:

2 ripe Bosc pears

1/2 cup water

1 cup dry red wine (I used Malbec)

1 T. honey

1 navel orange, the juice and the zest

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1 cinnamon stick

1/4 t. whole cloves

1/4 t. black peppercorns

3 oz. dark chocolate, grated (a bit extra for garnish)

For mascarpone cream:

1/2 cup mascarpone

1 T. milk

1/4 t. vanilla

Directions

1. Slice the pears in half lengthwise. With a teaspoon gently remove seeds.

2. Combine water, wine, juice and zest of the orange, honey and spices in a saucepan that will be large enough to hold the pears in one layer so that they do not overlap. Before adding the pears, bring the liquid to a simmer.

3. Add the pears to the pot. Cover. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, basting every few minutes.

4. Remove the pot from the stovetop. Remove the lid and allow the pears and liquid to come to room temperature.

5. Place pears and the liquid in the refrigerator. I transferred mine to a pie plate and covered it with foil. The pears need to chill for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 24 hours. This process allows the pears to absorb the flavor of the mulled

   wine.

6. Remove from the fridge. Allow to return to room temperature. Remove pears from liquid and set to the side.

7. Use a sieve to remove the spices from the liquid. Pour the liquid into a small saucepan and simmer over medium for about 15 minutes until the mixture thickens. Keep a close eye so that you will be left with about 1 cup.

8. While the wine reduces, whisk together the mascarpone, milk, and vanilla.

9. Remove wine from the heat and whisk in the grated chocolate.

10. Serve the pears immediately, topped with the wine sauce and a dollop of mascarpone and chocolate shavings.

Two to four servings. Keep in mind that you will need to poach the pears between 4 and 24 hours before you plan on serving them.

Valentine is a monoprint using a heart stencil, stamps and acrylic paint.