Pears in red wine with cinnamon. Traditional recipe

How to prepare some pears in wine . This is a very famous dessert recipe in Spanish households, due to its easy preparation and the simplicity of the ingredients. In addition there are many different varieties of pears, allowing them to be available in the markets throughout the year.

To make this recipe the best are the  bell-shaped pears , from a variety with tender and juicy meat, such as Bartletto or Abate Fetel. The latter, of national origin, is the one that we have used. At the time of selecting them in the greengrocer they must be ripe but firm, so that they can perfectly withstand cooking. If they give way when pressed with your finger, they are too ripe for this dish.

When you get home you have to release them from any bag or wrap so they can breathe and handle them carefully. It is enough to store them in cool, dry places protected from light, or in the least cold part of the fridge, no more than three days, to delay their maturation.  Winter pears have rough, thicker skin that ranges in color from golden yellow to brown. They are aromatic and with an acid flavor and grainy pulp.

After these Christmas dates there are usually half bottles of wine left over , which have been left after family lunches and dinners. It comes perfect to take advantage of it with some pears in wine.

The starch of this fruit absorbs the alcohol of the wine and thus the sugars of one product and another are interwoven, resulting in a homogeneous flavor. So when we eat the meat of the pear, it seems to us that we are drinking wine, and when we drink the broth it tastes like fruit. A dessert of those that you have to try to make at home, I hope you like the recipe and you dare with it.

Preparation of pears in wine

1. We peel the pears, leaving the tail of the top to be able to then easily manipulate them. If we have a utensil to extract the heart we do it, otherwise we will remove it at the time of tasting them. We make a horizontal cut at the base of the pears so that they sit well in the casserole.
2. We chose a wide base pot / saucepan to fit all 4 pears perfectly. There must be plenty of space, enough between them to later wash them with the wine.
3. Pour the wine and put to heat over medium heat, when it reaches temperature add the sugar and stir so that it integrates.
4. Now add the cinnamon stick, the orange peel and the lemon peel. Remember that we must remove the white part so that they do not give us bitterness.

Pear cooking and final presentation

1. Place the pears in the saucepan, cover and cook 25-30 minutes over medium heat.
2. It is important from time to time, at least every 5 minutes, to water the pears several times with the syrup of wine that is being cooked.
3. As we are bathing the fruit, we will check how it is acquiring the color of the red wine.
4. After the cooking time we check with a skewer or skewer the optimal point. It should be easily inserted into the heart of the pear, the meat of which must be tender.
5. We remove the pears to a plate taking them by the tail. We continue to reduce the liquid in the pot, this time over high heat for about 10-15 min.
6. We must look for that we have a syrup of wine but without it getting to caramelize.
7. They can be eaten warm or cold according to taste. Although the most typical way is to consume them once they have cooled in the refrigerator. We can slightly heat the syrup to make it contrast with the fruit.
8. We place in a bowl one pear per person with a little syrup.

Conservation, tips and advice for some delicious wine pears

If we make many pears and they are left over, or we want to have some always ready to get us out of a hurry when we have run out of dessert. We have the possibility of keeping them in glass jars, canned type:

1. As always, we sterilize the cans well in hot water. Washing in the dishwasher will also have the same result. If possible we look for some tall boats so that the pears fit vertically.
2. We cut the pears in half and remove the heart (if we had not done it before). We place them vertically, fill with the wine syrup and then put the jars in a water bath for 30 minutes, to achieve a perfect seal.
3. Another option to cook them is to make several vertical cuts and present as if it were a half-open fan. An ideal complement is whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.