Baked Pears in Spiced Pomegranate Syrup
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These baked pears are a wonderful light autumn or winter dessert, perfect for the holidays!
Whenever I host big holiday dinners, I like to offer a few different desserts—something chocolate (because you’ve got to have chocolate for the chocolate lovers!), something seasonal, and something light, like fruit. These baked pears are a perfect light option. The pomegranate syrup is vibrant and festive, and the pears feel so much more special than your typical fruit salad. While they might seem like they’re begging for a scoop of vanilla ice cream, I actually think they’re sweet enough on their own—though a dollop of lightly sweetened Greek yogurt is a nice touch. I love serving them with cookies, especially my almond biscotti, double chocolate biscotti or shortbread cookies.
What You’ll Need To Make Baked Pears in Pomegranate Syrup
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by peeling and coring the pears. It’s easiest to use a vegetable peeler for peeling and a melon baller for coring — plus, if you do it this way, the fruit will look prettier. Leaves the stems on if possible (although they will only be on one half of each pear).
Make the pomegranate syrup by combining the pomegranate juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for one minute until the sugar is dissolved. Add the lemon juice, cloves and cinnamon sticks.
Arrange the pears cut side down in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Pour the syrup over top.
Bake for about 45 minutes, basting occasionally, until the pears are easily pierced with a knife.
Meanwhile, de-seed the pomegranate if necessary (see my tutorial on how to de-seed a pomegranate). Place the pears in shallow bowls and spoon some of the syrup over top. Sprinkle the pomegranate arils around the pears and garnish with cinnamon sticks, if desired. Serve warm, cold, or room temperature.
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Baked Pears in Spiced Pomegranate Syrup
These baked pears are a wonderful light autumn or winter dessert, perfect for the holidays!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups unsweetened pomegranate juice (such as POM Wonderful)
- ¾ cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, from one large lemon
- 2 cinnamon sticks, plus more for serving
- 6 whole cloves
- 4 firm baking pears, such as D'Angou or Bosc, peeled and cored (see note)
- ½ cup pomegranate arils, from one pomegranate or ready-to-eat, for garnish
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
- In a small non-reactive sauce pan (such as stainless steel, glass, enameled or nonstick), combine the pomegranate juice and sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat, then add the lemon juice, cinnamon sticks and cloves.
- Arrange the pears cut side down in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Pour the pomegranate syrup over the pears, and place the dish in the oven. Bake for about 45 minutes, basting occasionally, until the pears are tender and easily pierced with a sharp knife. If serving hot, proceed to the next step; otherwise, cover and chill until ready to serve.
- Place the pears in shallow bowls and spoon the syrup over top. Sprinkle the pomegranate arils around the pears and garnish with cinnamon sticks, if desired. Serve with fork and knife for cutting the pear, and a spoon for the syrup. (The dish may be served hot, cold or room temperature.)
- Note: Be sure to use firm, not ripe, pears. It's best to peel them with a vegetable peeler and core them with a mellon baller.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 1 pear half
- Calories: 161
- Fat: 0g
- Saturated fat: og
- Carbohydrates: 42g
- Sugar: 35g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 1g
- Sodium: 22mg
- Cholesterol: 6mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Hi Jenn
I’m thinking of making this for a dinner party dessert. Can I slice the pear and fan out before or after baking to give a more dramatic presentation. Thanks
Lynn
Sure, Lynn — I’d fan them out after baking. Hope everyone enjoys!
Hi Jenn – Another winner! I made these for Passover and everyone loved them. Very easy. Had to bake the pears about 15 minutes more than suggested because they were really hard. But they baked up nicely. I have a lot of sauce leftover and am wondering if I can reuse it (to bake up some more pears) or freeze it and use it as an ice cream topping. Any thought? Thanks. Kathy
Hi Kathy, So glad you enjoyed! You can definitely reuse the syrup to bake more pears. Freezing it is also a great idea…I think it’d be delicious over vanilla ice cream. 🙂
Hi Jenn I love your recipies! My husband cannot eat sugar-is there a substutition that I can use?
Hi Marisa, Glad you like the recipes! 🙂
I think an equal amount of maple syrup would work here if that’s allowed in your husband’s diet.
This will be the third time making for family. It is truly a hit!
Super easy, elegant in appearance and delicious!! Thanks for this great recipe.
I made these on the weekend to serve with yoghurt and granola for brunch. They were so delicious and the spices gave a beautiful flavour. They were a huge hit with everyone and I’ll be making them again. Thanks for a great recipe.
I followed the recipe but I cored the pears and left them whole. It’s super pretty this way. I just adjusted the baking time
Made these as a lighter Christmas dessert option. They were seasonal, delicious, and beautiful!
I found the baking time was not adequate for the pears to become tender throughout. I baked for an extra 15 minutes, while continuing to baste the baste every 5-10 minutes but I felt that the pears were just too hard still.
Hi Nafsin, Sorry to hear you struggled with these a bit. Were your pears very hard or large to start with? (That may have made a difference in baking time.) If you prepare these again, I would just keep them in the oven until they achieve the desired texture.
Is there a way to use Pomegranate molasses instead of the juice, or a combo of both, in this recipe, Jenn? Adding some ruby port might be fun, too! I love poached pears, and have pears on hand, so I want to try this version. I will, of course, report back!
Hi Marlene, I probably wouldn’t use pomegranate molasses; I think it might thicken the syrup too much and make it too sweet. However, using half pomegranate juice and half port or red wine works beautifully — I have tried it. You can also add some orange peel to flavor the syrup if you like. Hope you enjoy and please do let me know how it turns out.