Poached Pears

R3A2 DAY BEFORE COOKBOOK's
POACHED PEARS IN WINE

This is for 2 pears.  Can be multiplied.  I use 6 pears for New Year's Eve with ~30-40 guests expected and half a dozen other desserts available.

1.  Peel and slice vertically into 8 wedges (or 12 for bigger pears), removing seed part and any hard stem sections:
     2 D'Anjou pears (best if they're not totally ripe; ripe ones get
     slimy when cooked)
          Notes on other pears:
          Bartlett - too mushy
          Bosc - maybe OK
          Starkrimson - too soft

2. [Do _not_ do step 2 before step 1 because the wine boils very quickly.]  In saucepan, bring to boil
     1/4 c red wine
     1/4 c sugar
     1/2 cinnamon stick (or a whole small one)

3. Add pears, reduce heat, simmer 25 minutes covered, or until pears are soft but not falling apart.

4. Remove pears with slotted spoon. Reserve syrup.

5. [I don't always do step 5. My neighbor Delia did it and it does look nice, however. I often just serve the pears with a little unthickened syrup for color and moisture.]   A few hours (or a day) before serving, bring reserved syrup to boil stirring occasionally. Let simmer a few minutes to thicken and reduce for a glaze.

6. Arrange pears on platter and drizzle on the syrup. Refrigerate until a few hours before party. Overnight is OK. More than a day is fine if the syrup hasn't been thickened. 

first made, printout 12/31/06 (e-version lost)
1/2/11; 11/13, 12/24/14