Winter is here in full force and while everyone’s reaching for blankets, it’s the time for spice, decadence and a good glass of wine. Combine them all into this sweet and fruity dessert of red wine poached pears and serve with crème anglaise near a crackling fire. Heart winning? Absolutely.Poaching is gentle, stove-top cooking and pears are ideal since they keep their shape. Poaching improves the taste of pears and the longer the pears sit in the syrup after poaching, the better they’ll taste. Choose pears that are firm with no bruises and minimal marks. They should not be completely ripe or they’ll be too soft once cooked.
Ingredients – serves 6

6 pears
1 lemon
1 bottle red wine
300g caster sugar
2 cinnamon sticks, halved
2 Tbsp whole cardamon
2 Tbsp whole star anise
Zest of 1 orange

Method:
1. Peel your pears but keep them whole and with the stalk intact. To prevent them from browning, once peeled, place them in a bowl of cold water with a squeeze of lemon and some lemon rind.
2. Put the pears into a large saucepan with the wine, sugar, cinnamon, star anise, cardamon and orange zest.
3. Make sure the pears are covered in wine so that they cook through evenly. Poach for approximately 30 minutes. The cooking time will depend on the ripeness of your pears – they should be tender all the way through when pierced with a cocktail stick.

TIP: Whilst poaching, cover the pears with baking paper. This will ensure that your pears cook evenly.
4. Remove the pears from the pan, then boil the liquid to reduce it by half so that it’s syrupy. You can then put your pears back into the syrup.
5. Serve each pear with the syrup, a piece of cinnamon and star anise.

Sound good? Download print-friendly recipe.

And for more winter recipe inspiration, you might like to give these a whirl:

• Lamb tagine and couscous
• Pork belly with apple sauce
• Beef and Guiness pies
• How to make Glühwein