Sherry Baked Pears Food

SHERRIED PEARS

Steps:

• Peel, core and halve the pears. Toss them with the lemon juice.
• Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a saucepan. When the sugar has dissolved, add the pears, lower the heat and simmer until the pears are just tender, about 10 minutes.
• Drain the pears, transfer them to a shallow serving dish and pour the sherry over them. Turn them in the sherry once or twice. Serve the pears while they are still warm.

SHERRY BAKED PEARS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350F/180°C.
• Combine sherry, water, sugar, lemon juice and butter in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat about 5 minutes.
• While sauce is cooking, halve, pare and core pears. Arrange pears in a baking dish. Pour sherry sauce over pears. Cover dish.
• Bake about 35 to 40 minutes or until pears are tender.
• Serve warm or chilled, plain or with whipped or sour cream, if desired.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND SHERRY CAKE WITH CARAMELIZED PEARS

Steps:

• To prepare the cake
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line bottom of a buttered 8-inch round cake pan (2 inches deep) with a round of foil and butter foil.
• In a food processor grind almonds fine with 1/4 cup sugar. Add chocolate and, pulsing motor, chop into 1/4-inch pieces.
• In a bowl with an electric mixer beat yolks with 1/4 cup remaining sugar until thick and pale and stir in almond mixture. (Mixture will be very stiff.)
• In a large bowl with cleaned beaters beat whites with salt until just stiff. Stir one third whites into almond mixture to lighten it and fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly.
• Pour batter into pan, smoothing top, and bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out clean, about 45 minutes. let cake cool in pan on a rack about 5 minutes.
• In a small bowl stir together orange juice, Sherry, and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar until sugar is dissolved. With a skewer poke holes evenly in top of cake and spoon juice mixture evenly over cake.
• Let cake cool completely. Run knife around edge of pan and invert cake onto plate (discard foil). Cake keeps, wrapped and chilled, 5 days.
• To prepare the sauce
• In a small saucepan heat half-and-half over moderate heat until it barely simmers. In a small bowl whisk together yolk, sugar, Sherry, and a pinch of salt.
• Whisk 1/4 cup half-and-half into yolk mixture to temper it and pour yolk mixture into remaining half-and-half, whisking.
• Cook sauce over moderate heat, whisking, until thickened (160°F. on a candy thermometer), about 3 minutes, being careful not to let it boil. Transfer sauce to a small pitcher and chill, covered partially, at least 30 minutes. Sauce keeps, covered and chilled, 2 days. Makes about 2/3 cups.
• To prepare the pears
• Cut pear (unpeeled) into eights and trim core. In a heavy 8-inch skillet heat butter over moderately high heat until melted and foamy. Add pear wedges and sauté 1 minute on each side. Sprinkle sugar over pear wedges and sauté, turning a few times, until sugar is caramelized and pear is tender, 2 to 4 minutes.
• Serve cake at room temperature with Sherry custard sauce and caramelized pears.

BAKED PEARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Place pear halves, cut side up, in a shallow 1-qt. baking dish. Place butter in the center of each; drizzle with lemon juice. , Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over pears. Top with marmalade. Bake, covered, until heated through, 15-20 minutes.

SAUSAGES WITH SHERRY CARAMEL GLAZED PEARS

Steps:

• Bring sugar and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a 10-inch heavy skillet, stirring until sugar is dissolved and washing down any sugar crystals on side of skillet with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Boil syrup, without stirring, gently swirling skillet, until mixture is a deep golden caramel.
• Carefully stir in vinegar (mixture will steam vigorously and caramel will harden). Remove from heat and stir until caramel is dissolved, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a heatproof cup and reserve skillet (do not clean skillet).
• Peel pears, quarter lengthwise, and core. Toss with 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
• Add 1/4 cup water, butter, and shallots to reserved skillet, then cook, uncovered, over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until liquid is evaporated and shallots begin to brown, about 5 minutes.
• Add pears and cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown but not soft, about 6 minutes.
• Stir in caramel, salt, and pepper, then cook 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in remaining 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice.
• While pears and shallots are sautéing, cook sausages in oil and remaining 1/4 cup water in a 12-inch heavy skillet, covered, over moderate heat, 5 minutes.
• Remove lid from skillet and cook sausages, turning occasionally, until liquid is evaporated and sausages are browned and cooked through, about 6 to 12 minutes more. Serve sausages with shallots and pears.

RACK OF PORK ROASTED WITH SHERRY AND PEARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and core the pears and cut each into quarters. Reserve the peelings and place the pears in enough ice water to cover. Add the lemon juice to the pears, stir and set aside.
• In a saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the shallots and 1 clove of minced garlic and the pear peelings and allow to soften for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid burning. Add the sherry and the chicken broth, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Continue to simmer the sauce until it has reduced by half. Strain the sauce and set aside.
• Place the pork on a rack in a roasting pan and season with salt, pepper and the remaining garlic. Place in the oven for 10 minutes. Drain the pears and pat them dry and place them around the roast, glazing each with the drippings from the meat. If, at this point, the pork has not rendered enough fat to lightly coat the pears, melt the additional butter and brush over the pears. Return to the oven for 25 minutes.
• Remove the pork from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes while reheating the sauce. Carefully slice the pork between the bones and place two chops, flanked by the roasted pears, on each of 6 plates. The pork can be served with glazed carrots (see recipe) and wild rice.

ROAST PEAR & SHERRY ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Peel, halve and core the pears, then put them in a gratin dish or roasting tin in which they can sit without too much surface area around them (otherwise the juices that come out of them will just burn off ). Sprinkle with the sugar and drizzle over 4 tbsp sherry and the melted butter. Bake for 30-40 mins; the pears should be completely tender and the juices around them slightly caramelised (check on them after 20 mins - if the pears are small it will take less time). Cut the pears up - still in the dish - and pour over the remaining sherry. Leave to cool completely, then purée (including all the juice) and push through a sieve. Cover and chill.
• To make the ice cream base, put the cream and milk in a heavy-based pan and add half the sugar. Slit the vanilla pod along its length and scrape the seeds out into the pan. Drop in the pod as well. Bring to just under the boil, stirring, then take the pan off the heat and leave to infuse. Remove the vanilla pod.
• Put the egg yolks in a bowl with the rest of the sugar and whisk with electric beaters until the mixture has increased in volume and falls in ribbons (this will take about 2 mins). Gradually stir about half the cream mixture into the eggs and sugar, then add this to the rest of the cream in the pan. Set the pan over a very low heat and cook, stirring all the time with a wooden spoon, for 8-10 mins, or until the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Be really careful not to let the mixture overheat or it'll curdle.
• Pour the custard into a bowl set in a sink of iced water (this stops it cooking immediately) and leave to cool, stirring a little every so often. Chill for 3 hrs. Stir the pear purée and the 2 tbsp sherry into the custard, then churn in an ice cream maker following the manufacturer's instructions. Spoon into a container, cover and store in the freezer. Alternatively, if you don't have an ice cream maker, put the custard and pear mixture into a freezer-proof bowl, cover and put it in the freezer. Beat the mixture every hour until it's frozen (about 4 hrs) to break down the crystals.

PORK CHOPS WITH PEARS

Steps:

• In a large frying pan, brown the pork chops in hot oil; drain.
• Transfer the pork chops to a shallow baking pan and season with salt and pepper.
• Arrange the pear halves around the chops.
• Drizzle orange juice over all.
• Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.
• Pour sherry over all.
• Place butter in the hollow of pears.
• Cover and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.
• Uncover and continue baking for 20 minutes, until meat is tender.
• Place the pears and pork chops on a platter.
• Dissolve cornstarch in water, stir into sauce mixture and cook until thickened.
• Pour over pork chops and pears.
• Enjoy!

PEARS BAKED IN AMARETTO CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Grease a 9-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar into buttered dish.
• Rub remaining butter onto cut sides of pear halves. Arrange pears into the prepared baking dish with the cut sides down. Sprinkle remaining sugar over the pears.
• Stir cream and amaretto together in a bowl.
• Bake pears in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Pour cream mixture over the pears and continue baking until the pears are tender, about 15 minutes more.