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Thursday, November 4, 2010

Roasted Pears


I listen to NPR religiously. Fresh Air, This American Life, Wait Wait Don't Tell Me - but my favorite is the all-food talk show, The Splendid Table. Each week, I tune in to hear one of my idols, Lynn Rosetto-Casper, discuss yummy recipes, new techniques, and great restaurant finds. As a tip: never listen to this show while hungry, because she and her guests have a habit of describing the flavor of food in such a way to your mouth water instantly. Hunger ensues.



A couple months ago, Lynn did a segment on roasted pears. This week, I ended up with 3 pounds of Bartlett pears leftover from my recent catering job, and decided to turn them into a delicious yet healthy dessert. I am not much of a dessert person in general, but I do love a good crumble.

I have been trying to eat a little cleaner lately, so my recipe has a lot of uber-healthy substitutions. If you are feeling naughty, or you are entertaining, you may want to substitute honey for the brown rice syrup.

Roasted Pears with Granola
Serves 6

Ingredients
4 Bartlett or Bosc pears, ripe but not mushy
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup chopped almonds
3 tablespoons Earth Balance butter, melted
3/4 cup brown rice syrup
1 lemon, juiced
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat over to 400.

Slice pears in half length-wise, and remove core with a spoon, leaving a large indent in each half. In a large bowl, toss pears with lemon juice, vanilla, 1/2 cup syrup, ginger, and 1 teaspoon salt.

In a small bowl, mix oats, almonds, and remaining rice syrup and salt.


Arrange pears, cut side up, in a single layer in a large greased baking dish. Reserve any leftover marinade. Place a spoonful of oat mixture in the indent of each pear. Cover with foil, and bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Remove foil, and continue to bake until pears are soft and granola is brown. Spoon remaining marinade over pears and serve warm. Garnish with mint if desired. To make these super-indulgent, serve with vanilla ice cream.


1 comment:

  1. Following your blog while not having access to a kitchen is torture. I have yet to find any place in Gainesville that cooks the way you do.. Can't wait to go home for the holidays and try some of your recipes!!!

    ReplyDelete