Best Saffron Poached Pears Recipes

POACHED SAFFRON PEARS

Steps:

• Soak the saffron in warm water and leave for an hour. Dissolve the caster sugar in the water and ginger wine in a medium pan. Turn up the heat and boil for 3-4 minutes before adding the star anise and orange peel. Turn the heat to low and add the pears, peeled with stalks left on. Press scrunched greaseproof paper lightly over the pears. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, occasionally turning.
• Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl. Strain the syrup into a jug and stir in the soaked saffron and liquid. Pour over the pears. Cover and chill for 24 hours, turning once.
• Place each pear on a separate plate, drizzle over a little syrup. Serve with dollops of mascarpone.

SAFFRON POACHED PEARS

Steps:

• Combine wine, sugar, saffron and vanilla in a nonreactive saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, over medium heat for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, with a stainless steel knife, trim bottom of pears so they stand upright. Peel them, leaving an inch of the peel at the stem end. With the help of an apple corer or melon baller, cut out core and seeds, working from the bottom end.
• Add pears to poaching liquid and poach them, covered, for 8 to 10 minutes or until barely soft. Remove pan from heat and either let pears cool in poaching liquid and serve liquid as is or, cool pears in liquid for an hour only. Remove from syrup, then reduce syrup until thickened and concentrated; cool.
• Option: When cool, stuff cavity with fresh raspberries, stand pears upright in a bowl, drizzle syrup around pears and float raspberries and mint leaves over syrup.

POACHED PEARS WITH SAFFRON BROTH

Steps:

• To make the broth, stir the pear nectar, agave nectar, lemon zest, ginger, maple syrup, and saffron together in a large saucepan or 3-quart sauté pan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then place the pear halves in the saucepan, flat side down. Place a piece of parchment paper over the pears and cover with a small plate to weight the pears down as they simmer. Lower the heat and simmer until the pears are tender and a knife pierces them all the way through without resistance.
• Remove the pears from the saucepan. Return the liquid to the heat, bring to a lively simmer, and cook until syrupy, about 10 minutes. Taste the liquid for a quick FASS check. It may need a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice to balance the flavors.
• Serve the pears drizzled with the poaching liquid and topped with a dollop of nut cream if you like.
• variation
• For vanilla broth, omit the lemon zest, ginger, maple syrup, and saffron, and instead stir 2 teaspoons of agave nectar into the pear nectar. Cut a vanilla pod in half lengthwise, scrape the seeds into the saucepan, then throw in the pod. Proceed with the recipe as above.
• For star anise broth, omit the lemon zest, ginger, maple syrup, and saffron, and instead stir in 4 pods of star anise, 4 whole cloves, 2 cinnamon sticks, 2 teaspoons of agave nectar, and 2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Proceed with the recipe as above.
• rebecca's notes
• To seed and stem a pear beautifully, once it's cut in half, use a melon baller to scoop out the center, making sure to remove all of the seeds. Then use a sharp paring knife to make a small angled slice on each side of the core, running out from the center of the pear to the stem. This will remove a clean and even triangle-shaped piece where the stem and the core had been.
• You can garnish the pears with the solids from the broth. Lemon peel, vanilla pods, star anise pods, and cloves all make beautiful garnishes.
• storage
• Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
• nutrition information
• (per serving)
• Calories: 225
• Total Fat: 0.2g (0g saturated, 0 g monounsaturated)
• Carbohydrates: 59 g
• Protein: 1g
• Fiber: 4g
• Sodium: 15mg

POACHED PEARS WITH SAFFRON WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Poached Pears: Core pears from bottoms, using a small melon baller or measuring spoon to scoop out seeds. Cut a round of parchment to fit inside a medium saucepan.
• Place pears in pan along with wine, sugar, orange juice and zest, cinnamon, saffron, and enough water to mostly cover pears (about 3 cups). Add vanilla seeds, then pod. Cover with prepared parchment round.
• Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, turning pears occasionally to keep them covered with liquid, until tender (easily pierced with the tip of a knife) but not falling apart, 12 to 15 minutes, depending on ripeness and size. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pears to a large bowl; cover with parchment round from pan.
• Remove and discard vanilla pod and cinnamon. Bring poaching liquid to a boil and cook until reduced to a thin syrup, 25 to 30 minutes (you should have 1 to 1 1/2 cups). Pour syrup over pears and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, until cold, at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.
• Saffron Whipped Cream: In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup cream and saffron over medium until just barely bubbling around edges. Remove from heat and transfer to a large mixing bowl; add remaining 3/4 cup cream. Refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. Add sugar and beat on medium speed until soft peaks form.
• Serve pears whole or halved in shallow bowls, with syrup and saffron whipped cream.

POACHED PEARS IN SAFFRON CITRUS SYRUP

Steps:

• Place the first 4 ingredients in a large saucepan with 2 cups of water.
• Heat, stirring, over low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
• Bring to the boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer.
• Add the pears and cook, covered for 12-15 minutes, turning them halfway through.
• Remove pears from liquid, and bring it back to boil, uncovered.
• Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the syrup has reduced by half.
• Remove the vanilla bean and drizzle syrup over the pears.
• Serve with biscotti.

PASTRY NESTS WITH POACHED PEARS AND FETA AND SAFFRON CREAM

Steps:

• Poach the pears: Place sugar, spices, lemon zest and 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a small saucepan. Add 3 cups/700 milliliters water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once sugar has dissolved, add the pears, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 15 to 20 minutes (depending on the ripeness of the pears), until they are soft all the way through. Set aside until slightly cool, then lift the pears out of the syrup and quarter them lengthwise. Remove the core and stalks and discard; return pears to the syrup to infuse overnight, or if that isn't possible, for at least 3 hours. (The longer they infuse in the syrup the more color they will take on from the saffron.)
• Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• Make the nests: Place the kataifi pastry in a medium bowl and gently separate the strands. Pour the melted butter over and mix together well, using your hands to make sure all the strands are coated. Separate the pastry into 8 equal portions and then form each into nests that are a scant 3 inches/7 centimeters wide, piling the pastry up on the sides so the edges are taller than the base. Arrange nests about 1 inch/2.5 centimeters apart on the baking sheet and bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until golden brown and crisp, rotating the sheet halfway through. Set aside to cool.
• Make the feta and saffron cream: Place mascarpone, feta, sugar, saffron and its water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk until combined and smooth, then add heavy cream. Continue to whisk for 1 to 2 minutes, until light and thick. Transfer cream into a piping bag (if you have one) and set aside.
• Remove the pears from the syrup and reserve. Strain the liquid into a clean saucepan and add honey. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the mixture is thick and you have about 1/2 cup syrup left. Remove from heat, stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice and set aside to cool.
• When ready to serve, cut each pear quarter into 3 longish segments. Place 2 pieces of pear in the middle of each nest and then pipe (or spoon) about 1/4 cup cream on top. Place 1 slice of pear on top of the cream, so that it sticks up, and sprinkle each portion with a teaspoon of slivered pistachios. Drizzle a teaspoon or two of syrup over each of the nests and serve. Reserve remaining syrup for another purpose, such as drizzling over yogurt.