Roasted Pears with Creamy Spiced Caramel Sauce

Ripe pears take less time to roast. If your pears are really hard, bake them for 10 minutes in an empty baking dish before adding the rest of the ingredients. I prefer Anjou pears for this dish, as they take on the flavours of the spices best, but Bartlett pears would be a good substitute. The salty finish adds flavour and cuts sweetness.

Ingredients

• 4 firm Anjou pears, peeled, halved and cored
• 1 cup apple juice
• ½ cup white wine
• ½ cup whipping cream
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon allspice berries
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns
• 1 4-inch cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon Maldon salt

Method

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Place pears, cut-side down, in a baking dish just large enough to hold a single layer. Combine apple juice, white wine, whipping cream, sugar, peppercorns, allspice, cinnamon and salt. Pour over pears.

Place in oven and bake for 30-45 minutes or until pears are tender and translucent. If the pears are not covered with liquid you may need to turn them over halfway through cooking.

Strain sauce into a pot and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 5 to 10 minutes or until sauce is golden and lightly coats the back of a spoon. Pour sauce over pears and sprinkle each pear with an extra tiny pinch of salt just before serving. Serves 4.