Pears Helene

By aiati

Ingredients

• Chocolate Sauce:
• 4 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled and cored
• 2-1/2 cups sugar
• 2-1/2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 scoops vanilla ice cream
• 1 cup chocolate sauce
• 1/4 cup toasted, slivered almonds
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1/2 cup strong black coffee or 1 teaspoon instant coffee in 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup superfine sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from yankeemagazine.com

Preparation

Step 1

Cut pears in half lengthwise. Put sugar and water into a saucepan and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in vanilla, add pears, and simmer another 15 minutes, until pears are tender. Allow pears to cool in the syrup.

Chocolate sauce: place the chocolate, broken up into small pieces, in a thick-bottomed pan with the coffee and sugar and melt over a low heat, stirring occasionally. Then pour in the cream, still stirring, and when it is very hot pour into a warmed sauceboat or a bowl with a ladle.

Serve: place one scoop of ice cream onto each of 4 chilled plates. Arrange 2 pear halves on either side of ice cream, then spoon chocolate sauce over all and top with almonds.