The Perfect Pear

I’m not the best baker but I love dessert.  Baking takes a lot of precision, it's science and I am more of an arts and literature type of cook – I like creativity and very little boundaries.  When it comes to desserts I tend to try dishes that don’t include a lot of flour, measuring or an exact amount of anything.  Example:  It took me three Fall cooking seasons to master Pumpkin Bread!  It’s now my seasonal go to hostess gift.  Hmm, maybe I will ship holiday loaves to all of my followers?  What do you think? :) 

When I experienced my Whole Foods Freak Out a few weeks back I came out of that experience with a fab, gourmet dessert – Dolce Gorgonzola Stuffed Pears!! It sounds super fancy but it is remarkably easy and so unique.  You have to be prepared because the flavor combos are very non-traditional; the pungent gorgonzola has a hint of sweetness but evens out when paired with the caramelized brown sugar and butter topping.  The pear provides the perfect neutral platform for all the flavors to gel.  Want to impress?  Here’s what you do:

Bradford Pears – 2-3 large

Brown Sugar – 3-4 tablespoons

Splenda – 1-2 tablespoon

Butter- 4-5 dabs

Gorgonzola Dolce

Walnuts = ¼ cup diced

Cinnamon - dash

Nutmeg – dash

Honey

Greek Yogurt

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice your pears in half and core out the seeds and ribs.  Slice a bit off the bottom of each half so the pears lay flat in your dish.  Place in greased baking dish and squirt with lemon juice.  Next crumble fresh Gorgonzola Dolce into the center of each pear half.

In bowl mix sugars, nuts and seasonings.  Top each pear with the sugary mixture – use a LOT of it, cover the core and top of each pear.  Then place a dab of butter onto each pear half.  Place in oven for 20-30 minutes until knife tender and caramelized. 

Serve each pear in a bowl with vanilla Greek yogurt and drizzle with honey.  Garnish with chopped walnut and there you have it…you are a gourmet goddess!  Enjoy!