Instructions

1. Choose your poaching liquid and sweetener. For the liquid, you can keep it simple with water, or add wine to your sauce for a more complex flavor. You want enough liquid in your pot to cover the pears so that they cook evenly. For every quart of liquid you add to a large pot, stir in about 1 1/2 cups of sugar. Substitute all or part of the sugar with brown sugar, honey or another sweetener if desired.

2. Add a few whole spices, such as a vanilla bean, cloves, a cinnamon stick and allspice berries. Make sure you not to add so much that it overwhelms the flavor of the pears. Bring the liquid to a simmer and stir until the sweetener is completely dissolved.

3. Peel the pears and halve them, removing their core. Slide several pear halves into the simmering liquid. Cover the pears with a round of parchment paper with a hole cut in its center. This allows steam to escape while holding the pears below the liquid. Simmer the pears for 15 to 25 minutes until they are cooked through and tender. Remove pears from the poaching liquid using a slotted spoon and set them aside.

4. Bring the poaching liquid to a light boil and simmer it until it reduces by about a third, or until it thickens and becomes syrupy. To give the sauce more complexity, add dried fruits such as cherries, cranberries or raisins and simmer them with the sauce until they plump up. It only takes a few minutes of simmering for the liquid to reduce, so watch the sauce carefully and stir it frequently.