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Spiced Red Wine Poached Pears over Sweet Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Spiced Red Wine Poached Pears

An elegant, French dessert, these Red Wine Poached Pears are light and easy to prepare!  A showstopper.  

Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

For the pears

  • 1 750 ml bottle fruity red wine
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 star anise pods
  • 4-5 cardamom pods lightly crushed
  • ½ tsp allspice berries lightly crushed
  • ¼ tsp whole pink or black peppercorns lightly crushed
  • 1 small knob fresh ginger
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 6 bosc pears peeled

For the mascarpone whipped cream

  • 8 oz marscapone cheese
  • ¼ pint heavy whipping cream
  • Heaping ¼ cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  1. Combine the wine, water, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, allspice, peppercorn, ginger, and sugar in a pot over high heat and stir to dissolve the sugar

  2. Gently peel the pears and add them to the spiced red wine once boiling

  3. Bring the liquid back to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-35 minutes, stirring the pears occasionally

  4. Make the mascarpone whipped cream by combining cream, mascarpone cheese, and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.  Beat on low for 30 seconds or until light and fluffy

  5. After poaching, remove the pears from their liquid and allow to cool.  Return the liquid to medium high heat and let reduce for an additional 20 minutes or until reduced to about 1 cup

  6. Serve each pear with a dollop of the whipped cream and a healthy drizzle of the spiced red wine syrup