These poached pears, tender but with just the right amount of bite, make a perfect fat-free fall dessert.
How to Make It
1. Combine apple cider, orange zest, orange juice, brown sugar, and vanilla bean paste in a 6-quart oval slow cooker; whisk vigorously until sugar dissolves. Add cinnamon sticks. Place pear halves in an even layer in cooker. Cover and cook on high until pears are tender, about 2 hours and 45 minutes, turning pears after 1 hour.
2. Remove pears from cooking liquid. Place 2 pear halves in each of 6 dessert dishes.
3. Pour cooking liquid through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a small saucepan; discard cinnamon sticks. Bring mixture to a boil over medium- high. Boil, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick and syrupy and reduced by about half, about 10 minutes. Drizzle cider sauce over each serving and serve warm.
Also appeared in: Cooking Light, October, 2020,Slow Cooker Recipes