Mulled Wine Poached Pear

Look at these pears on the plate: they look so luxurious in their marzipan coat. Today I show you, how to prepare this dessert that takes almost no effort to present. Mulled Wine Poached Pear look brilliant on a festive table because this is definitely a royal way to enjoy this common fruit.

The recipe doesn't use flour or dairy, so if you're ok with sugar or can replace it with any healthier option, this dessert will save you not only time but many calories too.

Is the word 'reduction' sound familiar?

Maybe you heard it in documentaries about the fine-dining world or read about famous tasting menus. I have some good news: you will prepare a reduction in your kitchen today. Nobody will call you that you receive three Michelin stars for this, but you won't understand, how could you live without reductions till now, since it's a simple thing as well.

Ingredients

Poaching liquid / Mulled wine reduction

750 ml red wine (I used the Pinot Noir of Bouchard Aines Fils)
5-7 tbsp sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
6-8 whole cloves
2 star anises
Half of an orange
Half tsp ginger

Poached pears

5 firm pears
400 g natural marzipan
Icing sugar for rolling

Instructions

Poached pears

In a large saucepan mix the wine, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, star anises, ginger, and orange. Heat it up on medium heat.
In the meantime, peel the pears but do not remove their stalk. By using a vegetable peeler, the peel will be very thin, leaving you more fruit to enjoy. Cut the bottom of the pears to make sure they can stand straight on a plate.
When the poaching liquid starts to simmer, add the peeled pears. Make sure the liquid covers them completely, otherwise they won't be completely red where they are not covered.
Keep the stove on medium heat and poach them for about 10-15 minutes. You can test them by a toothpick or fork: if they are tender, but still holding their shape, you can remove them from the poaching liquid and place them on a plate.

Mulled wine reduction

Strain the poaching liquid
Pour it into a smaller saucepan and simmer it on medium heat till it's reducing to its quarter. You will get a honey-like syrup.

Serving

Roll the marzipan on a surface, covered by icing sugar, to 2-3 mm thick. If you wanna save some time, use the ready-rolled version.
Use a pizza knife or rolling dough cutter to cut the marzipan into about 2 cm wide, long stripes.
Cover the pears with these marzipan stripes, simply wrap the marzipan around them. If the stipe is not long enough to cover your pear, simply attach a new piece and keep continue till the bottom of the pears.
Serve them with the warm mulled wine reduction.