Any seasonal fruit can be poached, though Geoff and his boys particularly like pears. For a non-vegan option, the pears are delicious with caramel sauce poured over the.

Ingredients

• ¾ cup sugar
• ¾ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup verjuice
• pared rind of 1 orange
• 6 pears, peeled with stems intact
• Caramel sauce
• 100 grams butter, diced
• ¼ cup honey
• 1 cup cream
• 6 tablespoons verjuice

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
2. Into a saucepan put the sugar, orange juice, water, verjuice and orange rind and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Sit the pears in an ovenproof dish. Pour the syrup over the pears and cover.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes or until the pears are tender. If possible, baste the pears occasionally with the syrup during cooking. While the pears are baking, prepare the caramel sauce.
4. Serve the pears warm with a jug of caramel sauce on the side and a sccop or two of ice cream.

Cooks Tips

Variation - This baked pear recipe can be varied by using apples. For this you need eating apples such as Jazz, Royal Gala or Pacific Rose. - For the tastiest pears, use Doyenne du Comice or Beurre Bosc - both varieties, with their distinctive pear shape, have a smooth, buttery flesh.