Vanilla Poached Pears with Raspberry Compote (Vegan)

 

I'm loving fall. Last year I was in Spain from September until the end of January, so I completely missed my favorite season, and with it some of my favorite fall foods. Right now is peak raspberry season, and I found some gorgeous little organic pears at our local coop that are in season now too. I bought the pears on a whim, figuring I would come up with something I could do with them. Then my one of my relatives with a big garden gave my mom a big bowl of raspberries, and she split them with me. Thanks mama ;)

So what could I do with these two things? How about poached pears and a raspberry sauce? I pitched the idea to Ryan and he was all for it, so I improvised this recipe. It turned out very tasty.... I especially love the compote.

 Don't those raspberries look amazing? So juice and delicious! The compote turned out so tasty, I may make extra next time to use as jam on pancakes or mix into ice cream.

 The pears were pretty small, so I got 12 of them. They make for a nice little snack, but took awhile to core and peel.

Here are the pears after being poached, and the compote with the raspberries added reducing in the pot.

Vanilla Poached Pears with Raspberry Compote

12 small pears or 6 large pears, cored (from the bottom) and peeled, leaving stems intact
2 cups water
1 cup white wine (I used chardonnay)
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise and insides scraped out and added to pot
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups raspberries, mashed

1. Put the wine, water, vanilla bean and sugar in a pot and turn heat to high. Stir while it heats to dissolve the sugar.

2. Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and add the pears. The stems make a great little handle to lower them in. The liquid should come at least half way up the pears if you're using the right sized pot. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.

3. Move the pears from the pot onto a plate. Remove the vanilla bean pieces and add the raspberries to the left over liquid. Turn heat to high and reduce the liquid, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. It will thicken more as it cools, so don't worry if it is sill a little thin.

4. Either serve immediately, or refrigerate pears and compote separately. Combine and reheat when ready to serve.