Chocolate Caramel Pears Recipes

QUICK & EASY CARAMELIZED PEARS

Steps:

• In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high. Add pears, one cut side down, and cook until browned, then reduce heat to medium and cook 3 minutes. Turn pears to other cut side and cook 4 minutes. Add sugar and 1 tablespoon water, swirling pan to combine. Turn pears skin side down and cook until sauce is thickened slightly, 2 minutes. Stir in vanilla and pinch of salt. Serve warm with ice cream.

CARAMEL PEAR DESSERT

Steps:

• In a small skillet, saute pecans in butter until toasted; set aside. In a small saucepan, combine brown sugar and cream. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 3 minutes. , Place cake slices on individual dessert plates. Top with ice cream and pears. Drizzle with cream mixture; sprinkle with reserved pecans.

PAM'S RUSTIC CARAMEL PEAR TART

Steps:

• 1. Defrost the puff pastry in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter for 1 1/2 hr. Take out one sheet, unfold on a lightly floured or vegetable sprayed counter. Cut 1/2 - 3/4 inch strips from all four sides of the sheet. Moisten the edges of the large sheet and place the strips on the edges of the rectangle. These will puff up and form a thicker edge. Prick the main base all over with a fork to keep it from rising too much while baking. Transfer to a lightly oiled baking sheet and refrigerate for about 1 hour while making the filling.
• 2. Mix the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and egg with a hand mixer until smooth and well blended. Scrape the bowl a couple of times to make sure you have it all mixed. Set aside.
• 3. Peel, core and slice pears into about 1/4" slices. Sprinkle with lemon juice and set aside. Heat oven to 375 F with the rack in the middle of the oven.
• 4. Take the pastry out of the fridge and spread the cream cheese mixture over the inside of the rectangle, trying not to go over the edge strips. Lay the pear slices as close as possible together to cover most of the custard mixture, again,keeping them off the edge pastry strip.
• 5. Sprinkle the pears and pastry edges with the cinnamon and sugar mixture. (I sometimes use a little more straight cinnamon sprinkled on top) Bake at 375° F for 25 to 35 minutes or until the crust gets a nice golden brown and the pears are browned and tender.
• 6. Remove from the oven. Let cool for about 15 minutes. Microwave some of the caramel topping in a small bowl until semi-liquid. Drizzle the entire surface with a light coating of caramel. Then melt some of the white chocolate (about 3 to 4 oz) until spreadable, and either drizzle with a fork over the top, or place the warm chocolate in a small zipper bag, cut off a tiny tip of the bag and squeeze the chocolate over in a pretty pattern. Let cool or serve warm with ice cream if desired.
• 7. For the Variation: Spray an 8 or 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Mix 3/4 cup each of crushed vanilla wafers and gingerbread cookies with 1/4 c sugar and 1/4 c melted butter. Place in prepared pan and press lightly. Using the same cream cheese custard mixture as above, spread the mixture over the crumb base. Chop pears into 3/4" chunks and distribute over the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle liberally with either cinnamon and sugar mixture, with sugar and freshly grated nutmeg, or with brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake at 350°F for 35 to 45 minutes or until the custard is set and the top is lightly brown. Remove from the oven and let cool. Refrigerate before serving. Again, you can drizzle the top with melted white chocolate or thin powdered sugar icing.

CARAMEL PEAR BLONDIES

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter and line a 20 x 20cm square cake tin.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, swirling it around. Allow to bubble for a few minutes, or until it turns a light golden brown and smells biscuity. Remove from the heat and leave to cool a little.
• Tip the eggs into a large mixing bowl and whisk together with the light and dark sugars until just combined. Whisk through the melted butter, vanilla and salt.
• Gently fold through the flour, baking powder, dried pears and most of the chocolate chunks, being careful not to overmix (this will make the blondies dense).
• Pour the mixture into the lined tin. Top with the remaining chocolate and dollops of the caramel. Put in the centre of the oven to bake for 40 mins, or until a skewer inserted comes out with sticky crumbs (it shouldn't be wet). Leave to cool completely in the tin. It will sink a little - the centre should be slightly squidgy. Cut into 12 squares. Will keep in an airtight container for up to three days.

UPSIDE-DOWN PEAR CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Butter a 9-inch round baking pan.
• To make the fruit topping, put the sugar and water in a heavy saucepan (one with a tight-fitting lid) and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, then cover and cook for 2 minutes. (Covering in this way allows the steam to wash down the sides of pan, which will prevent any sugar crystals from forming.) Uncover the saucepan and continue to boil the sugar, gently and slowly swirling the pan as needed to cook the caramel evenly, until it becomes a dark amber color. Occasionally wash down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Carefully pour the caramel into the prepared pan and allow it to harden. The pan will be very hot from the sugar, so take care in moving it if you need to. Fan the pear slices on top of the caramel in a circle around the perimeter, filling in the center with the remaining slices.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• To make the cake, place the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat and melt, stirring occasionally. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. Transfer the melted chocolate to a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and add the sugar. Using a handheld mixer with beaters or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture in three additions alternating with the milk in two additions, beginning and ending with the flour and scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the middle of the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the cake bounces back slightly when touched. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then invert the cake onto a plate, leaving the pan on top of the cake for 5 minutes before you remove it. Serve the cake warm, topped with a small dollop of Chantilly cream or a scoop of Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.
• Storage: Wrapped in plastic wrap, the cake will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days.