Baked Pears with Caramel Sauce
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 5 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 ½ cups apple juice
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 6 tablespoons softened cream cheese
- 1/3 cup walnut or pecan pieces
- 2 tablespoons currants
- 2 pears
Caramel Sauce:
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon water
- ½ cup whipping cream
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 ounces butter
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In small saucepan combine butter, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, apple juice and 2 tablespoons maple syrup. Heat.
- In a small bowl combine remaining brown sugar (3 tablespoons), cream cheese, nuts, remaining maple syrup, 1 tablespoon, and currants, optional. Mix well.
- Peel pears. Cut in half and remove core. Fill core with cream cheese mixture. Spoon or brush small amount of apple juice syrup mixture over pears. Bake for 30-40 minutes until soft, basting with syrup occasionally. Reserve extra syrup for future use. Or this syrup can be served with fruit and the caramel sauce omitted.
- Caramel Sauce:
Combine sugar & water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly about 3 minutes. Add cream & vanilla & cook over medium heat, stirring frequently about 5 minutes. Remove from heat & add butter, stirring constantly.
- Sauce may be made in larger quantities and stored in cooler. Reheat as needed.