Pear Bavarois
A layered chilled dessert made with red-wine-poached pears, cream custard, and jelly.
Ingredients
Red wine poached pears
3 portions
Pears (canned)
3
Canned pear syrup
to taste
Red wine
to taste
Gelatin powder (for the bavarois)
10 g
Water (for blooming gelatin)
40 g
Egg yolks
40 g
Granulated sugar
40 g
Canned pear syrup (for the bavarois)
100 g
Milk
100 g
Heavy cream
160 g
Pear liqueur
15 g
Red wine poached pear (for the bavarois)
1
Gelatin powder (for the jelly)
15 g
Water (for the jelly)
450 g
Granulated sugar (for the jelly)
90 g
Pear liqueur (for the jelly)
20 g
Red wine poached pears (for decoration)
2
Sponge cake (slightly smaller than the mold)
1
Pistachios (crushed)
to taste
Instructions
1
Poaching the Pears
Combine the canned pears with red wine along with a portion of the canning syrup in a pot and heat. Simmer briefly, remove from the heat, and let cool. Soak for 1 to 2 days, during which the pears will turn red around the edges.
2
Blooming the Gelatin
Place cold water in a bowl, sprinkle in the gelatin, and let sit for at least 10 minutes to soften. Bloom the gelatin for the jelly in the same way.
3
Whipping the Cream
Whip the heavy cream until it forms soft ribbons that trail down from the whisk, then refrigerate until needed.
4
Whipping the Egg Yolks
In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolks with the sugar and whisk until pale and fluffy. Set aside.
5
Heating the Milk Mixture
Add the milk to the remaining canning syrup from step 1 and heat without stirring.
6
Combining the Milk and Egg Yolks
Once bubbles form around the edge of the pot, remove from the heat and pour into the bowl from step 4, gently whisking to combine.
7
Cooking the Custard
Return the mixture from step 6 to the pot and cook over medium-low heat. Do not stir; remove from the heat just before it reaches a boil. If the mixture begins to separate, whisk it back together.
8
Adding the Gelatin
Remove the pot from the heat, pour over the bloomed gelatin from step 2, and stir until the gelatin is fully dissolved.
9
Straining and Flavoring
Once the gelatin is dissolved, strain out any lumps, then add the liqueur to taste.
10
Cooling the Mixture
Set the bowl over an ice bath and stir continuously to cool the mixture.
11
Folding in the Cream
Once the mixture begins to thicken, fold in the whipped cream.
12
Gentle Folding
Use a rubber spatula to fold gently so the cream does not deflate.
13
Adding the Pear Pieces
Add the diced pears and fold in immediately.
14
Adding the Sponge Cake
Add the sponge cake. It can be omitted, but the dessert will then be more difficult to unmold.
15
Chilling to Set
Refrigerate until fully set.
16
Making the Jelly
Add the sugar to the bloomed gelatin from step 2 and bring to a brief simmer.
17
Flavoring and Cooling
Remove from the heat, stir in the liqueur, and cool over an ice bath.
18
Pouring the Jelly
Pour a thin layer of jelly over the bavarois and chill briefly in the refrigerator.
19
Decorating with Pear Slices
Once the jelly has set to a firm, non-flowing consistency, arrange thinly sliced pears on top in a flower-petal pattern.
20
Final Decoration and Chilling
Sprinkle the crushed pistachios on top, pour over the remaining jelly, and refrigerate until fully set.
21
Unmolding
To unmold, wrap the mold with a warm towel so the bavarois releases easily without melting the jelly. Leave it for a moment and then invert onto a serving plate.
