Pears have never been one of my favorite fruits… I have always favored berries to any other fruits. But how I love cooked pears!
Don’t get me wrong… I like pears, particularly, sliced up next to a nice piece of gruyère or comté cheese. But I have grown to love also a nice roasted or poached pear. And in my interest to find new ways and flavors to pair pears with I developed this nice recipe…
POACHED PEARS IN ORANGE JUICE
2 pears – I usually buy Bartlett as they’re widely available here 2/3 cup of orange juice – can be freshly squeezed or from the Tropicana container 2 tbs maple syrup 1 tbs maple sugar A pinch of salt
- Pre-heat oven to 350F. I make this in a toaster oven…
- First, peel, halve and core your pears. I use a melon-baller or a round 1tbs measuring spoon.
- Mix the rest of the ingredients in an oven safe dish where you can fit comfortably all 4 halves of pears. Place the pears in the dish and move the around so the liquid coats somewhat the whole pear, even though the pear halves will not be submerged in the liquid.
- Bake for approximately 30-45 minutes until pears are soft when pierced with a fork. Make sure the poaching liquid does not burn or caramelize before the pears are cooked.
The thickened poaching liquid will serve as syrup on top of the pears when serving. Serve with a nice nutty, salty cheese (like gorgonzola dolce or comté) on the side and some almond or walnut praline.
KarmaFree Cooking 
These sound delicious. When I went to Spain a few years back, I discovered baked pears as a dessert. They are so light and delicious. I think your recipe would be great with some orange liquer baked in it as well. Thanks.