Balsamic Pears

Most of our vegetables for a good three quarters of the year are roasted – broccoli, kale, potatoes of every kind, pumpkin, carrots, beetroot, you name it! There’s something just so comforting about the aromas and the caramelized little corners that simply personify good taste to me!

So…when I prepped a wonderful pork belly and realized the side dishes had been completely neglected, I needed something real quick to accompany the protein…and that is how these beauties were born!

Pears are so good on their own, or poached, or in bakes, but they’re also crazy good when roasted simply with a little balsamic, rosemary, salt and pepper. The smell of them as they cook is divine and they are also super quick!

These balsamic pears are brilliant as a side to pork but can also be served up on a cheese platter with some blue cheese or even in a salad with rocket, walnuts and a good dash of parmesan. Of course, you could also serve it with a quality vanilla ice cream as a sweet and savoury combination – the creaminess of the ice cream combined with the tartness of the balsamic is simply heaven!

Serves: 6-8
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients 

• 4 firm yet ripe beurre bosc pears
• 50g unsalted butter
• 6 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar (normal balsamic is fine too)
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves (roughly chopped)
• Sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions 

1. Preheat the oven to 200C.
   
   
2. Place the butter in a pan that is large enough to snugly fit the pear halves and pop in the oven to melt.
   
   
3. Once the butter has melted, halve the pears lengthwise, remove their core and place them, cut-side down, into the melted butter. Pop them back in the oven and roast them for about 10 minutes, or until they are almost tender.
   
   
4. Take the pan out, drizzle the balsamic vinegar, rosemary, salt and pepper over the pears, swish the pan around, and return to the oven for a further 5-7 minutes.
   
   
5. Transfer the pears to a serving plate making sure to drizzle the gorgeous juices from the pan over the fruit.

---

Also in From the Orchard