For 6 people:
6 underripe pears, peel 'em but dont't cut the stalks off
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup sugar
4 cups red wine
orange peel (optional)
Dump everything in a saucepan and simmer until the pears are tender but NOT mushy, it takes about 1 hour, a little longer sometimes.
Turn the pears every now and again so they cook evenly.
Discard the orange peel and cinnamon and boil the liquid for about 2o minutes, until it's syrupy.
Pour the sauce over, serve with a dollop of vanilla ice cream or mascarpone cheese, pretty it up with a mint sprig, sprinkle some nuts over if you like.
You can keep 'em whole, but i like to slice the pears bottom to top, not all the way through though, so you can fan it out on the plate.
Tastes good hot or cold.
Jinne, I've even drowned them in Cointreau, and to the amusement of my guests, almost set myself on fire!
Anneke
