Green Tea-Poached Pears with Matcha Cream

From EatingWell: Winter 2003 — Subscribe Now!

Green tea, delicately flavored with ginger and almond, makes a delightful poaching medium for pears.

Green Tea-Poached Pears with Matcha Cream Recipe

4 servings

Active Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes (including making Matcha Cream)

Nutrition Profile

Low cholesterol | Low sodium | High fiber | View Complete Nutrition Guidelines»

Ingredients

1/4 cup Matcha Cream, (recipe follows)
4 cups water
1 1/2 tablespoons green tea leaves, preferably sencha
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
4 firm, ripe Anjou or Bosc pears, peeled, halved and cored
1 tablespoon sliced almonds, toasted

Preparation

Prepare Matcha Cream.
Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a shallow pan or deep skillet. Stir in tea, turn off heat and let steep, covered, for 5 minutes. Pour through a cheesecloth-lined sieve to remove leaves; return tea to the pan.
Add sugar, ginger and almond extract and bring just to a boil. Add pears, cut-side up, and poach over low heat until quite tender when pierced with a wooden skewer. Transfer to a bowl and let the pears cool in the poaching liquid.
Serve at room temperature or chilled. Use a slotted spoon to place two pear halves in each dessert dish. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the poaching liquid over the pears. Serve with a generous dollop of Matcha Cream and garnish with almonds.

Tips & Notes

To toast almonds:
Heat a small dry skillet over medium-low heat. Add nuts and cook, stirring constantly, until the nuts are lightly browned and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl to cool.

Nutrition

Per serving: 369 calories; 7 g fat (4 g sat, 2 g mono); 23 mg cholesterol; 94 g carbohydrates; 5 g protein; 7 g fiber; 56 mg sodium; 408 mg potassium.

4 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 2 fruit, 1/2 low-fat milk, 3 other carbohydrate, 1 fat