Pears In Red Wine Sauce - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 grated rind and juice orange
1 1/4 cups red wine
3 tablespoons honey
1 cinnamon stick
1 vanilla bean
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
4 firm ripe pears
1/2 teaspoon arrowroot or 1/2 teaspoon potato flour
whipped cream, to serve
1 clove

Preparation

bring a pan of water to a boil.(large enough to put your steamer in or a casserole dish).
Meanwhile put the orange rind, juice, honey, wine, cinnamon stick, apple pie spice, vanilla bean and clove and bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat.
Peel pears, leaving stem intact, and cut off a small piece rom the bottom so the poears can stand up.
Put into heatproof bowl or casserole dish and pour wine mixture over them.
Cover the bowl or dish with tin foil and tie with kitchen string.
Put the bowl in the steamer and cover with a tight fitting lid. Set the steamer over hte pan and steam for 35-40 min, until the pears are tender.
Remove the pan from the steamer and let cool completely.
Transfer to a serving dish standing upright.
Remove the cinnamon stick, clove, vanilla bean from the wine mixture and bring to a nboil and cook til reduced by 1/2.
Put the arrowroot or flour into the wine sauce and simmer gently, will make a paste. Remove from pan and let cool.
Pour the wine sauce over the pears and chill for at least 3 hours.
Top with whipped cream.