This is a wonderful light dessert. The ruby colored pomegranate syrup is beautiful and festive, and baked pears are so much more enticing than a typical fruit salad. It might look like it’s begging for vanilla ice cream, but it’s plenty sweet and better without it — if anything, a dollop of honeyed Greek yogurt is nice.
Ingredients
- unsweetened pomegranate juice: 1.5 cup
- sugar: 0.75 cup
- lemon juice: 3 Tbsp (freshly squeezed; from one large lemon)
- cinnamon: 2 sticks (plus more for serving)
- firm baking pears: 4 piece (such as D'Angou or Bosc, peeled and cored)
- pomegranate arils: 0.5 cup (from one pomegranate or ready-to-eat, for garnish + 6 whole cloves)
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Begin by peeling and coring the pears. It’s easiest to use a vegetable peeler for peeling and a melon baller for coring — plus, if you do it this way, your pears will look prettier. Leaves the stems on if possible (although they will only be on one half of each pear).
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Make the pomegranate syrup by combining the pomegranate juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for one minute until the sugar is dissolved. Add the lemon juice, cloves and cinnamon sticks.
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Arrange the pears cut side down in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
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Pour the syrup over top.
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Bake for about 45 minutes, basting occasionally, until the pears are easily pierced with a knife.
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Meanwhile, de-seed the pomegranate if necessary. Place the pears in shallow bowls and spoon some of the syrup over top. Sprinkle the pomegranate arils around the pears and garnish with cinnamon sticks, if desired. Serve warm, cold or room temperature.
