Earl Grey Poached Pears with Hazelnut Granola

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Juicy pears are poached in a sweetened Earl Grey tea for a simple but delicious dessert. Serve with freshly whipped cream and hazelnut cacao granola for a grown up dessert.

I’m so happy it’s finally pear season again. For the last few months I’ve been scouring through the stack of pears at Whole Foods, searching for that just right pear and for the most part I’ve been unsuccessful. I occasionally use pears in my favorite smoothie **cough cough** like 3 days a week…

So, I was very happy when they finally reappeared in full force and peak deliciousness a few weeks ago.

I had actually never poached a pear before but I’ve always thought they look so elegant and would make for such a juicy and flavorful dessert.

Let me tell you. I was right.

These pears are baked in an Earl Grey tea mixture with vanilla and sweetened with just a touch of sugar. What comes out is a beautifully flavored and super tender pear that is delicious on its own, on french toast, in yogurt… you name it.

For this recipe though, I stuck with dessert. Pair these babies with freshly whipped cream and homemade granola made from hazelnuts, cacao, oats, nutmeg and maple syrup. The texture combination really takes it up a notch.

My favorite part about this recipe though is that it’s perfect perfect perfect for having guests over. AKA, you can make the entire thing in advance and merely assemble and serve!

Note: This recipe uses 2 whole pears. You can either serve smaller portions if you have 4 guests or double the recipe for 4 larger portions. You may need to use 2 baking dishes if all of the pears cannot fit face down.

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Earl Grey Poached Pears with Hazelnut Granola

Serves: 2

For Pears

⅔ cup water

3 Tbs granulated sugar

2 Tbs Earl Grey tea leaves

1 tsp vanilla

2 pears

For Granola

1 Tbs hazelnuts, finely chopped (about 6 nuts)

1 Tbs oats

⅛ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp maple syrup

Pinch of salt

1 Tbs Cacao nibs

For Cream

½ cup whipping cream

1 Tbs granulated sugar

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DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 400F.

2. Heat water and sugar over medium-high heat until sugar has dissolved and the mixture comes to a low boil. Remove from heat. Add Earl Grey tea and let steep for 5 mins.

3. While tea is steeping, prepare pears. Peel the pears, cut pears in half and remove the seeded core. Feel free to keep the stems on if you want your pears to look a little bit fancy. Place pears flat-side down in a baking safe dish (like a pie dish or 8x8 dish).

4. Strain tea leaves from liquid and discard tea leaves. Add 1 tsp of vanilla to liquid. Pour liquid over pears into baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes.

5. While pears are baking, prepare the granola. Combine finely chopped hazelnuts, oats, nutmeg, maple syrup and salt in a small bowl. Mix until syrup and nutmeg are evenly distributed. Spread mixture evenly on a baking sheet.

6. Once pears are done, bake granola in oven for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown. Keep a close eye on this. Once topping is done, let cool slightly and mix in cacao nibs.

7. Combine whipping cream and granulated sugar in a medium bowl. Use a hand blender to mix on high speed until soft peaks are formed.

8. Prep each plate with 2 pear halves plus juice, a scoop of whipped cream, and half of the topping.

Notes:

• This recipe is super easy to prepare in advance. Make and refrigerate the pears and whipped cream (up to a day in advance). Make the granola and store in an airtight container (up to a week and a half in advance). Assemble as needed.

• The granola topping is delicious on yogurt so feel free to double, triple, quadruple the recipe to have extra for sprinkling on literally everything.

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Lovely little things:

• Aghhh… I bought these shoes and I love them. They’re the Royale Flat from Free People and I got them in Cognac. I also really love the Brown so…. may need to get two eventually. Even though they’re leather, they’re very comfortable. The top section is a softer leather so your ankles don’t hurt. They’re tight when you first get them but will loosen up so keep that in mind. Definitely recommend.

• Still going through this Teeccino herbal coffee like crazy at work. I really like this Teecino variety pack which has Vanilla Nut, Hazelnut, French Roast and Chocolate (omg the chocolate). It tastes damn close to coffee but won’t give you the caffeine jitters or the acidic taste. I add half and half. It’s the best. Myself and a co-worker have gone through more boxes in the last month than I care to admit.

• Have you tried micellar water? I didn’t know this stuff existed until very recently and now I’m seriously wondering how I removed eye makeup before (jk, I know how: badly). I did a lot of research and this Garnier Micellar Water is supposed to be one of the best. From my personal findings, I totally agree.

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Currently reading

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling