These festive red wine Poached Pears are absolutely gorgeous, with beautiful color! This light and healthy dessert is perfect for the holidays- vegan and can be made ahead
Red wine-poached pears get a little makeover with pomegranate seeds and cardamom. This easy healthy dessert is perfect after a heavy holiday meal and is a snap to make. Plus they can be made ahead!
These little guys are stunning with their bright red hues. There is a secret ingredient that helps turn the pears into this lovely deep red. Can you guess what it is?
How to Make Poached Pears
TIP# Try to find small pears, preferably only 2 1/2 to 3 inches tall, with the stems intact. I have found these smaller-sized pears are easier to poach, and I prefer the presentation.
- Cut a little off the bottom of the pear, so they stand up nice and tall, and peel them.
- In a deep saute pan or pot, combine the wine, citrus, spices and… a couple slices of red beets to boost the color. This is the secret ingredient that will give the pears their deep rich red color. Bring to a boil.
- Stir well and add the beets, and simmer for 20-25 minutes, gently stirring every few minutes, to evenly coat them in color, until just tender.
TIP # 2 Play around with using different spices and flavorings, like star anise, pink peppercorns, juniper berry, or ginger. Remember to always taste your poaching liquid, for balance, sweetness and flavor. Adjust if necessary. If the poaching liquid doesn’t taste good, your pears won’t either. 
How to Serve Poached Pears
- Pears are done cooking when easily pierced with the tip of a knife.
- The best place to do this is on the bottom where the cut will not show.
- Transfer them to individual plates ( or refrigerate for later).
- Strain the wine and place in a smaller pot or sauté pan and reduce by two-thirds, until thickened and syrupy.
- Spoon over the pears allowing it to puddle at the bottom and garnish with the pomegranate seeds.
- I like serving this with a dollop of cardamon cream on the side (see the recipe below).
New to seeding pomegranates? Read the Best way to cut a Pomegranate, if you like!
Enjoy the poached pairs and have fun with this one!
xoxo
More recipes you may like:
Table of Contents
Poached Pears
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 4-6
- Category: Dessert
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: northwest
Description
Poached pears get a little makeover with red wine, pomegranate seeds & cardamom. This easy healthy dessert is perfect after a heavy holiday meal and is a snap to make!
Ingredients
Units
- 4–6 small ripe pears, peeled, with stem left on. ( Small pears work great here)
- 1/2 bottle of red wine
- 1 orange
- 3/4 cup sugar, brown sugar or maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 whole cloves
- 1 tsp ground cardamom or 5 crushed cardamon pods
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 slices fresh red beet (no need to peel, for extra vibrant color- optional)
- Garnish 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
Cardamom Whipped Cream (optional)
Instructions
- Peel the pears, and slice a little off the bottom so they stand up nice and flat on the counter.
- In a small pot, combine the wine, zest and juice from an orange, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom and beet slices. Bring to a simmer and stir to allow beet slices to infuse their color.
- Add the peeled pears and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, gently stirring and turning the pears to get uniform coloring. Simmer until they’re easily pierced with the tip of a knife, at their thickest place – about 25 minutes depending on the size of the pears. With a slotted spoon, gently transfer the pears to a plate standing upright. ( You could do this ahead and refrigerate.)
- Strain the liquid and return it to the stove, and reduce. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until thickened and syrupy over medium-low heat, and reduced by two-thirds, about 15-20 minutes. Taste and adjust the sweetness if you like.
- To make cardamom whipped cream- place all ingredients in a mixer with whisk attachment..and whisk until stiff peaks form, or for a workout, whisk by hand in a mixing bowl. Whisk just until the cream reaches stiff peaks. Store any unused portion in an airtight container for up to 10 hours. When ready to use, whisk for 10 to 15 seconds.
- Serve: Place each pear on a plate, and spoon some redwine sauce over the pears. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and with whipped cream on the side.
Notes
- Play around with using different spices and flavorings, like star anise, pink peppercorns, juniper berry, or ginger. Remember to taste your poaching liquid, for balance, sweetness and flavor. Remember … If the poaching liquid doesn’t taste good, your pears probably won’t either. 🙂
- Pears and sauce can be made ahead and reheated.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pear without whipping cream
- Calories: 146
- Sugar: 25.1 g
- Sodium: 44.2 mg
- Fat: 0.7 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 35.9 g
- Fiber: 6.3 g
- Protein: 1.7 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
yummy
Yum!
I don’t have much experience with fresh beets. Should I peel them first? (And I’m assuming pickled beets from a jar aren’t what you have in mind for this recipe, right?…)
Hi Donna, the beet is strictly for the color it adds to the pears. You just need a slice of fresh beet,and leave the peel on. Pickled beet juice will change the flavor and we don’t want that.
Just served these Poached pears last night for a celebratory dinner and it was delicious and beautiful. The beet slices added such beautiful color.
Great to hear!
The perfect dessert for my dinner party tonight (in which I used 3 more of your recipes, too!) Served the pears with vanilla ice cream. Left the whole house smelling delicious.
Thanks so much Vicky!
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Beautiful photos and a wonderfully healthy recipe. Just wondering if this is something that could be prepared a day in advance? Thanks for sharing.
Absolutely- make them a head and refrigerate- the reduced sauce can be served cold too.
Looks too good to eat. This is a great and healthy dessert! Trying this one soon. Great blog and beautiful photographs!
Pears are a favorite of mine. I have fond memories of my mom poaching pears and LOVING THEM. I like the addition of cardamom. Your photos are wonderful.
Thanks Bernadette!
Such a pretty dessert!! That would be quite impressive at any dinner table!
Do you think I could freeze these and still have the texture be okay?
Not so sure Amenda, I think they will be softer and may not hold their shape?
These turned out wonderful- just like the photos! Made them ahead and served chilled.
Gorgeous, as always. And a wonderful use of pomegranates!
Thanks!