Roasted Sugar-Glazed Pears

By west757

In this recipe, almonds, currants, and raisins are stuffed inside pears, which are roasted for a simple, yet elegant dessert. This recipe first appeared in Saveur's November 2012 issue along with Bernard L. Herman's story A Bountiful Shore.

Ingredients

• 7 firm pears
• 3 tbsp. rum
• 2 tbsp. dried currants
• 2 tbsp. golden raisins
• 2 tbsp. light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp. whole, blanched almonds, finely chopped
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 2"-piece ginger, peeled and minced
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing
• 1/2 cup sugar

Details

Adapted from saveur.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Peel, core, and finely chop 1 pear and place it in a 2-qt. saucepan along with rum, currants, raisins, brown sugar, almonds, ¼ tsp. cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, ginger, and both zests and juices; boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring, until mixture is soft and thickened, about 15 minutes. Let cool.

2. Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 9" glass pie dish with butter; set aside. Combine remaining cinnamon with sugar in a bowl; set aside. Using a channel knife, cut a spiral pattern in the skin of each remaining pear from top to bottom, if you like. Carefully core each pear from the bottom with a melon baller, coring about 1½–2" deep. Divide stuffing among pears; brush outsides with butter and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat. Stand pears upright in the prepared dish, and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar; bake until just tender when pierced with a paring knife, about 40 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.