Cast Iron Skillet-Roasted Pears with Caramel Sauce
By Stephanie PixleyPublished on July 14, 2017
Time
45 minutes
Yield
Serves 2 to 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
For the best texture, try to buy pears that are neither fully ripe nor rock hard; choose fruit that yields slightly when pressed. If you don't have cast iron, you can use a 12-inch nonstick skillet.
Instructions
- Add water to 12-inch cast-iron skillet, then pour sugar into center of skillet (don't let it hit skillet's sides). Gently stir sugar with clean spatula to moisten it thoroughly. Bring to boil over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is completely dissolved and liquid is bubbling, about 2 minutes.
- Add pears to skillet cut side down, cover, and cook until almost tender (a fork inserted into center of pears meets slight resistance), 10 to 15 minutes, reducing heat as needed to prevent caramel from getting too dark.
- Uncover, reduce heat to medium-low, and continue to cook until sauce is golden brown and cut sides of pears are beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Pour cream around pears and cook, shaking skillet occasionally, until sauce is smooth and deep caramel color and cut sides of pears are golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Transfer pears cut side up to serving platter and season sauce with salt to taste. Spoon sauce over pears. Serve.
Time
45 minutesYield
Serves 2 to 4Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
Pears tend to take a back seat in the dessert world, frequently getting passed over in favor of colorful berries or reliable apples. However, when given the proper treatment, these sweet, juicy fruits have a unique texture and flavor all their own. Paired with the power of a cast-iron skillet, pears become the base for a simple yet elegant dessert. Bartlett and Bosc varieties were the clear winners for our recipe as both became sweeter when cooked and retained their texture instead of becoming mushy. We started by roasting the pears in boiling sugar and water until they softened and became golden, which developed a complex sweetness in the fruit and also created the base for an accompanying caramel sauce, turning this rich dessert into a simple one-skillet dish. We cut out the need for an intimidating candy thermometer by relying on visual cues to tell us when the caramel was ready and the pears were properly cooked. To finish the sauce, we added heavy cream to the skillet toward the end of cooking and gently shook the pan to help give the sauce a rich, glossy consistency.
Before You Begin
For the best texture, try to buy pears that are neither fully ripe nor rock hard; choose fruit that yields slightly when pressed. If you don't have cast iron, you can use a 12-inch nonstick skillet.
Instructions
- Add water to 12-inch cast-iron skillet, then pour sugar into center of skillet (don't let it hit skillet's sides). Gently stir sugar with clean spatula to moisten it thoroughly. Bring to boil over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is completely dissolved and liquid is bubbling, about 2 minutes.
- Add pears to skillet cut side down, cover, and cook until almost tender (a fork inserted into center of pears meets slight resistance), 10 to 15 minutes, reducing heat as needed to prevent caramel from getting too dark.
- Uncover, reduce heat to medium-low, and continue to cook until sauce is golden brown and cut sides of pears are beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Pour cream around pears and cook, shaking skillet occasionally, until sauce is smooth and deep caramel color and cut sides of pears are golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Transfer pears cut side up to serving platter and season sauce with salt to taste. Spoon sauce over pears. Serve.
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