Vanilla, Honey and Saffron Pears with a Vanilla and Honey Mascarpone Cream

My click entry - CLICK!!!!

These were our dessert on Sunday evening, I made Indian Spiced Lamb burgers with Herb yogurt which I'll write about later and they were the perfect light end to a lovely meal. They are also my first ever entry for Sugar High Friday that's being hosted in April by Amrita at La Petite Boulangette which is entitled “Asian Sweet Invasion”

This recipe is from a book called Best Ever Book of Wok and Stir-Fry Cooking and it cost me the grand total of €6.95 when I was in Waterford over the easter weekend. I got this book along with another one called Best Ever Indian Cookbook, I don't normally buy books like these but my aunt has the Indian one and being a very visual person I was pulled in my the fantastic pictures.
This was a last minute recipe aswell as I read about April's Sugar High Friday this morning and happened to have everything I needed in my press for once and they were asian influenced to go with the lamb burgers, maybe different parts of asia but asian none the less!!!

For 4 people you'll need:

5oz caster sugar
7tbsp honey
1 tsp finely grated lime zest
large pinch of saffron
1 vanilla pod
500ml water
4 large pears (comice or conference are best)

Put the caster sugar, honey, lime zest, saffron into a wok or large pot.
Cut open the vanilla pods and scrape out the seeds and add to the pot along with the emptied pods.
Pour the water and bring to the boil while you peel the pears.. When the syrup comes to the boil add the pears and gently turn them to coat all sides.
Cover the pot and allow to simmer gently for 12-15 mins turning the pears halfway through. Once the pears are done remove from the pot with a slotted spoon and increase the heat under the pot to high so the syrup comes to a boil.
Allow to reduce for 10 mins until thickened.


For the mascarpone cream:
125g mascarpone or half a tub
125ml cream or half a large carton
seeds from a vanilla pod
1 tbsp honey

Mix everything together well and serve.

I have to say this was one of the nicest dessert I've had in a long long long time!! It was light and the flavours worked so well together after me thinking it smelled a bit weird buring the cooking. We ate all 4 pears despite my good intentions of keeping 2. I also got to play with my new piping bag and in the top pic you can see my new pestle and mortar courtesy of a bargain in TK Maxx in Blanchardstown on Friday night, it's actually for my birthday in a couple of weeks but there's no sense wrapping it now I've seen it is there..............................................................



This is also my entry for April's Click (I hope it's ok to use 1 post to enter 2 events) and this months the theme is Au Naturel so I am entering this picture with the pestle and mortar and the pears as it stuck me as rather nice and as I'm learning more about my camera this is my current favourite shot.

Fingers crossed!!!!!