Slow-Roasted Pears With Hazelnuts, Honey & Mascarpone

Total Time: 1 hr 45 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 large lemon, juice of
• 100 g caster sugar
• 4 firm beurre bosc pears
• 1 vanilla bean, halved
• 45 g butter, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup hazelnuts, halved, roasted
• 1/3 cup mascarpone

Recipe

• 1 Preheat oven to 190°C or 170°C fan.
• 2 Mix lemon juice and caster sugar into one litre of water and stir to dissolve the sugar; halve and core the pears and place in the water.
• 3 Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean; reserve the bean and place the seeds in a small bowl with the butter and brown sugar; mix well until soft and spreadable.
• 4 Remove the pears from the water and spread the butter mixture over the cut sides; pour 700 ml of the water into a deep baking pan, place the pears into the pan, cut-side up; place the vanilla bean halves in the water and cover the pan with foil; pierce the foil in four places.
• 5 Bake the pears for 11/2 hours until they are tender.
• 6 Place the pears in shallow bowls and spoon over a little of the cooking syrup; drizzle with honey and scatter with hazelnuts; and serve warm or at room temperature with mascarpone.
• 7 TIP: Check the water level in the baking pan from time to time during the cooking time, and add a little more water if too much has evaporated.