Roasted Pears with Blue Cheese, Cranberry, and Walnut Stuffing |
The filling for these roasted pears is a delightful balance of salty and sharp Stilton blue cheese, sweet dried cranberries, and toasty crunchy walnuts... tucked into a tender roasted pear.... basted and baked with a sweet & slightly tart port wine and apple cider vinaigrette.... over a bed of peppery arugula! How could Ina be wrong in this one?! I just HAD to find out for myself.
Make the stuffing:
- The players for the stuffing
- 3 Pears - ripe but still firm
- Fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 3 ounces Stilton blue cheese
- Rough chop the walnuts
- Crumble the blue cheese
- Loosely combine all three
- Peel the pears
- Using a melon baller, scoop out the core.
- Turn the pear over and cut a thin slice off of the rounded bottom so they will sit flat and straight in the dish.
- Remember, the pears will oxidize and turn brown quickly, so dip all the cut and scooped surfaces into the fresh lemon juice to prevent this.
- Fill the cavity of the pears with the stuffing.
- Arrange in an oven-proof dish.
- Stir to combine:
- 1/2 cup of apple cider
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp port wine
- Pour the vinaigrette over the pears.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes. (* see food notes below.)
- Let them sit out a cool for a while.. can be still somewhat warm.
- (Optional) Add the juices from the bottom of the casserole dish to a small saucepan and boil for a while to reduce and thicken the juices. (* see food notes below.)
- Let this cool.
- Arrange the pears over a bed of arugula.
- Dress the salad with the remaining reduced vinaigrette.
- Add Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
Written Method:
Personal food notes:
After roasting, the pear become soft and tender, the cheese melts and starts getting just a bit bubbly, and the rest of the stuffing sinks into the pear cavity. Honestly, I ate the arugula part because I felt like I "should," but what I really wanted to do was to just pick up the pear and eat it with my hand.
The cranberries were a little more brown than I think I would ideally like. Maybe next time I will cover the dish in foil for the last 10 minutes or so. Also, I think next time I will whisk in a couple tablespoons of canola oil while reducing the sauce for a truer vinaigrette. (just thinking out loud)
Make the stuffing:
- The players for the stuffing
- 3 Pears - ripe but still firm
- Fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 3 ounces Stilton blue chees
- Rough chop the walnuts
- Crumble the blue cheese
- Loosely combine all three
- Peel the pears
- Using a melon baller, scoop out the core.
- Turn the pear over and cut a thin slice off of the rounded bottom so they will sit flat and straight in the dish.
- Remember, the pears will oxidize and turn brown quickly, so dip all the cut and scooped surfaces into the fresh lemon juice to prevent this.
- Fill the cavity of the pears with the stuffing.
- Arrange in an oven-proof dish.
- Stir to combine:
- 1/2 cup of apple cider
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp port wine
- Pour the vinaigrette over the pears.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes. (* see food notes below.)
- Let them sit out a cool for a while.. can be still somewhat warm.
- (Optional) Add the juices from the bottom of the casserole dish to a small saucepan and boil for a while to reduce and thicken the juices. (* see food notes below.)
- Let this cool.
- Arrange the pears over a bed of arugula.
- Dress the salad with the remaining reduced vinaigrette.
- Add Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
Personal food notes:
After roasting, the pear become soft and tender, the cheese melts and starts getting just a bit bubbly, and the rest of the stuffing sinks into the pear cavity. Honestly, I ate the arugula part because I felt like I "should," but what I really wanted to do was to just pick up the pear and eat it with my hand.
The cranberries were a little more brown than I think I would ideally like. Maybe next time I will cover the dish in foil for the last 10 minutes or so. Also, I think next time I will whisk in a couple tablespoons of canola oil while reducing the sauce for a truer vinaigrette. (just thinking out loud)
I know there are some of my friends/family who aren't big "pear" people; and I think this could also work nicely with apples. I think maybe you may have to cook the apples for a while first, then add the stuffing and continue to cook.
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