Poached Pears

I finally did it.  I poached pears.  Thanks to Chow for helping me to come up with a recipe using stuff I had on hand.

2 cups of port wine and 2 of cab
1 cup water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 stick cinnamon
1 tbsp or so of whole cloves
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
4 firm Bosc or Anjou pears (about 1 pound)

Combine all ingredients except pears in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved. Meanwhile, peel pears, leaving the stems intact. Slice off the bottom 1/8 inch of each pear to create a flat, stable base.

Reduce heat to keep poaching liquid at a bare simmer and add pears, laying them on their sides so that they are almost completely submerged. Cook, turning pears occasionally so that they become saturated on all sides, until they are just tender when pierced with a fork, about 7 minutes.  Be careful when turning - if the pears are ripe, or once they start to cook they get very delicate and you can end up gouging them with your spoon as you try to turn them.

Allow pears to cool completely in the poaching liquid. Serve or transfer pears and liquid to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

To serve, I broke up half of a bar of dark chocolate into a small bowl, added 1/4 cup of milk and nuked for a minute.  I stirred, added more milk (another tbsp or two) until I had the consistency I wanted, then spooned the chocolate onto the plate and spread it around a bit, and nestled the pears on top.

Sauternes syrup

Why am I fixating on ice cream? I blame Quinn's article on using wine in cocktails for getting the wine syrup idea in my head, and then brainstorming cocktail ideas with him just now for keeping it going.
Thinking about a delicious sauternes syrup and how it would go lovely with a lightly flavored or maybe even vanilla ice cream with delicious dried fruit pieces. I'm really into these subtle, lightly sweet flavors right now, which is not wintery of me at all. Guess I just can't wait for a nice spicy meal on a warm summer night. Now I'll have to go somewhere where it's warm during the summer.

Sauternes syrup by the way, is just the wine and some additional sugar cooked down just like simple syrup. Maybe one part wine to 1/4 or 1/2 part sugar, versus the traditional 1:1 since there is already a pretty high sugar content in the wine. This would be awesome with pears too.
Mmmmm, like this recipe. Nom.

Vin de Noix

I should NOT read The Kitchn over my lunchbreak. It just may be my downfall. It gets the creative juices flowing and then I just cannot shut my brain up. I'm editing 30 posts to add new info, I'm creating another 30 drafts to finish later, and hell, even posting a few right away.
I ONLY HAVE AN HOUR AT BEST, THE KITCHN. I do not have time for you to distract me with your incredibly fantastic ideas like this. I think we need to take a break. Now, come on, don't cry. It's just for a little bit. Like maybe until lunch tomorrow. Fine; I'll write ONE quick post. Thank God I eat fast.

My friends think I'm some sort of culinary goddess. It's a trick (well, I am pretty goddessy, but I don't know if I reign over the culinary arts quite like they imagine). They think I whip up these meals for them using nothing more than a whif of something at the farmer's market and the Muse of flavor ingenuity. Lies. I AM A COPYCAT. Okay fine, sometimes I tweak things to my own specific tastes, or manage to understand which flavors work well together, or piece together how some other chef may have made a dish and recreate it at home; but does that make me creative? An inventor? I think not. The person who invented post it notes, vs. the person that decided to make them in different colors and shapes. Different wavelengths, people.

Well, I'm up to my old tricks again, but Christmas 2010 will no doubt see everyone clamoring over how clever and magical I am when I can gift them with some lovely Vin de Noix which I've cleverly packaged with bottles from the interwebs or local restaurant supply shops, and stuck Avery labels on in some lovely font that I've downloaded for free and drawn over with sparkly pens.
CHARLATAN!
(also, if you follow all of my links and do the same thing, I will CUT YOU, IDEA STEALER)

I missed the window this year, only learning of this elixir today; so boo. I am just over a month too late and this pains me so. So much that I'm determined to maybe find some green walnuts anyway, even though I know better.
The Kitchn has tons of great resources linked to their blogs for your perusal.
Look, I found a local vendor! Clary Ridge Ranch near Sacramento; and they'll even deliver so I don't have to cut the local Francophiles at the Alemany Farmer's Market next June.
Look, I found a fantastic blog and recipe from someone who clearly knows what she is doing! Lucy's Kitchen; which, let's face it, is golden. Otherwise I'd be doing this. Sorry Amelia.
Forums are another great spot for advice and pointers.

Version 1:
Liqueur de Noix

38 green walnuts, quartered
1 vanilla bean
2 star anise
2 long peppercorns
2 thick slices of lemon
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup grade B maple syrup
500ml or 2 cups Noilly Pratt Original Dry
1 bottle of vodka
Mix in a large bowl and cover; let it sit for a few months. At the two month mark it will probably still be bitter and medicinal, but go ahead and bottle and put away for several more months. Check in on it regularly to familiarize yourself with the process and the phases it goes through, and well, I guess it's ready when it tastes good!
GAH I wish she had clearer directions; covered the bowl with what?! You let it SIT OUT? Contaminatey! So many questions. . . luckily, she seems willing to answer them, at least in her comments!

Version 2:
Vin de Noix

Per 1.5 liter jar:

About 8 nuts each jar
500ml vodka
1/2 cup grade B maple syrup
1/3 vanilla bean
2 cloves
1 t. szchuan peppercorns
2 slices of an orange
top off with a full bodied white burgundy (Bourgogne) wine (used 5 bottles to fill all 6 of the jars to the top).

Vin de noix, in order to turn it's beautiful deep dark color, needs contact with some air. This is why mason jars are perfect for this - because you can close them without using the rubber gasket and they'll have enough air circulating to allow the liquid to turn black. Once 2 months have gone by, filter and bottle your vin de noix. Seal the bottles tightly then, and allow it to mature for another month or two before giving it away. By all means, taste it at every step, to understand how it develops and what to expect. You'll be suprised at the many different stages it goes through. I'll report back when this is ready to bottle.

Regarding finishing and bottling:
Cover the strainer on a French press with a coffee filter to help remove as much sediment as possible.


I am also curious to try my hand at:
Vin d'orange (from Epicurious or Sunset)
Limoncello (from Vox or Giada if you're skurred)
Plum wine (Umeshu), or maybe apricot wine, or maybe something with pear or apple. My Dad has an Albanian friend that makes apricot brandy that is like woah.