Ingredients:
4 firm pears, peeled, sliced in half lengthwise, and cored
1 orange, for zesting
¼ cup walnuts, toasted
2 ½ Tbsp fresh goat cheese, crumbled
Pomegranate Sauce
1 cup pomegranate juice
¾ cup brown sugar
4 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
Directions:
- 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- 2. In a small sauce pan, bring pomegranate juice, brown sugar, cloves, and cinnamon stick to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes or until sauce has slightly thickened. Stir sauce as needed to prevent burning.
- 3. While sauce is cooking, zest 8 strips of orange rind that are each large enough to place in the center of each pear half.
- 4. Peel, slice and core pears. Place 1 strip of orange zest in the center, cored area of each pear half.
- 5. In a large baking dish, place pear halves with orange zest cut-side down. After sauce has thickened, pour over the pears.
- 6. Bake pears for 45 minutes, basting every 15 minutes to prevent dryness.
- 7. While pears are baking, crumble goat cheese. Toast chopped pecans in a sauce pan for about 2 minutes to enhance their flavor.
- 8. Remove pears from oven; serve cut side up with a sprinkling of goal cheese and chopped, toasted pecans.
Yield: 8 pear halves
Nutrition information per serving: 117 calories, 1.2 g protein, 22 g carbohydrate, 3 g total fat with 0.7 g saturated fat, 1.3 mg cholesterol, 2.9 g dietary fiber, 15 mg sodium
Exchanges per serving: 1 fruit, 1 starch
Source: Recipe by Marianne Wetherill, RD/LD St. John Medical Center