My baked pears with cinnamon maple walnuts is the perfect holiday dessert. A little sweet and a little savory and the perfect ending to a great meal. This easy dessert for two can easily be doubled or tripled. Jus increase the amounts of the ingredients accordingly.
I used bosc pears because they are firm and hold up well to baking. Feel free to use your favorite pears but adjust cooking time. You don’t want your pears mushy. They should just be soft and warmed through.
To get started on this dish, start by toasting your walnuts in a small skillet on the stove top for 3-5 minutes until fragrant and lightly toasted. Stir them often and watch the nuts. They can burn quickly. Note: if for any reason you do burn the nuts, throw them out and start over. There is no recovery for burnt nuts. They’ll ruin the dish.
Pour the nuts into a small bowl and let cool a few minutes. Add a teaspoon of the maple syrup and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat the nuts.
Next, cut the pears length wise in half. Using a grapefruit spoon (my secret tool in the kitchen) or a tablespoon, scoop out the seeds in the middle of the pear leaving a deep cavity.
Brush each pear half with the remaining maple syrup. Fill the pear cavities with the nut mixture. Sprinkle the pears with the cinnamon.
One note on the maple syrup: It is very hard to duplicate the rich, thick flavor of maple syrup but I also have a lot of friends that watch their sugar intake and want to keep the calories or points (for my WW friends) low. As an easy substitute, use a sugar-free pancake syrup and mix with the nuts and brush the pears with it. They have almost no calories and no points for Weight Watcher members and you do get some maple flavor. Is it the perfect subsitution? No. But you are in charge and you can decide. It is just an option.
Spray a small baking dish with cooking spray and place the pear halves in the dish. Put in the preheated oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes until soft and heated through.
Meanwhile, on the stove, put the cinnamon and pear balsamic vinegar in a small pot and heat over medium heat until boiling. Let boil a minute and remove from the heat to cool. The vinegar will get sweet and syrupy as it cools.
Remove the pears from the oven and plate. Drizzle with the reduced balsamic vinegar. Serve with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. Sprinkle the pears with flaky salt to finish.
If you haven’t tried reducing balsamic vinegar, you are missing out on one of the all-time greatest “chefy” tricks. By bringing balsamic vinegar to a boil and letting it boil for about a minute, you are on your way to a syrupy glaze. Take the pot off the heat and let the vinegar cool. As it cools, it starts to thicken up. It gets sweeter and thicker and acts like a syrup. When using this pear and cinnamon infused balsamic, you are concentrating those flavors which totally enhances this dessert. It is just heaven on a spoon. If you don’t have the specialty vinegar, buy it! But if you can’t, just use regular balsamic vinegar with a sprinkle of cinnamon in the vinegar. Cook and cool the same way for a similar taste.
And there you have it…a simple, sweet and easy finish to your meal. If you like baked pears, be sure to try my Pears and Gorgonzola and my Roasted Pears with Granola, Yogurt & Maple Syrup too.
For other easy desserts for two, be sure to check out these recipes:
Almond Milk Pistachio Ice Cream
Blood Orange Olive Oil on Ice Cream
Baked Pears With Cinnamon Maple Walnuts
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 Large Bosc Pear
- 1 Large pinch of cinnamon
- 3 Tsp. Maple syrup divided
- 3 Tbs. Walnuts toasted and chopped
- Pinch of Kosher salt
- 1/4 Cup Patricia and Paul Cinnamon and Pear Balsamic Vinegar
- Vanilla ice cream optional
- Flaky Salt to finish optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.
- Cut the pear in half and using a grapefruit spoon, scoop out the seeds in the pear halves leaving a a deep cavity.
- Brush the two pear halves with two teaspoons of maple syrup. Mix the walnuts with one teaspoons of the maple syrup and a sprinkle of salt. Fill the cavities of each pear half with equal amounts of the chopped walnut mixture. Sprinkle the pears with cinnamon and put in the oven. Bake for about 20-25 minutes to soften and heat through.
- Meanwhile, heat the balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan until boiling. Let boil for about a minute. Take off the heat and let cool. The balsamic with get thick and syrupy as it cools.
- Remove the pears from the oven and plate. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream (optional) and drizzle with the balsamic glaze. Finish with a sprinkle of flaky salt. Enjoy.
