Poached Pears with Saffron

Name: Poached Pears with Saffron
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 8 oz sugar (1 ¼ cups); ¼ cup honey; 8 cups of water; 1 cinnamon stick; Large pinch of saffron; 3 whole allspice; 2 whole cloves; 1/ 4 cup Calvados or apple brandy; 8 pears – peeled, halved and cored

By Pascale Beale

Updated October 2026

Dairy-FreeDessertFallFrench-InspiredQuick & EasyWinter

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Photography by Pascale's Kitchen Studio

Total Time 45 minutes

Difficulty Easy

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

There is a magical alchemy in this dish: when you add a pinch of saffron to the simmering water, within minutes the liquid turns a deep, golden sunset hue. The pears, poached slowly in this fragrant simple syrup, absorb its color and warmth, and are transformed into a delicate, silky, jewel-like fruit. I like to serve them in glass bowls with a ladleful of the golden liquid. It is as beautiful to look at as it is to eat — an elegant end to a meal that belies how simple it is to make.

Preparation

1
Pour the water into a large saucepan (large enough to hold all the pears) and add the honey, cinnamon, saffron, allspice, and cloves. Bring to a strong simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
2
Reduce to a simmer, add the pear halves and the calvados, and poach for 20 minutes, carefully turning the pears once or twice. Remove from the heat but leave the pears in the poaching liquid to cool.
3
Serve two pear halves per person along with some of the poaching liquid. This is very pretty served with glass bowls. I like to serve it with little meringues or lemon shortbread.

This recipe was featured in The Thief Who Set The Table article, and comes from Pascale's Autumn cookbook.

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Poached Pears with Saffron

Preparation

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