Roasted Pear Sundaes with Homemade Caramel Sauce
Last night I made this as a trial run so I could adjust ingredients, time, and difficulty of the recipe. My intentions were to try a bite and put the rest in the freezer. That didn’t happen.. I quickly devoured the entire bowl and justified my ‘dessert dinner’ as acceptable because it had fruit in it.. If you’re okay with this little white lie to yourself or if you’re just looking for a fresh take on a classic dessert, dig in! It’s as easy as it is delicious!
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(Make 2 sundaes)
Ingredients:
½ cup sugar
1 ½ Tbs water
¼ cup heavy cream
2 large ripe Bartlett pears, cored and cut into ¾ inch pieces
2 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
Pinch of coarse salt
A tub (at least 1.5 quarts) of vanilla ice cream
¼ cup pecans, roughly chopped
Recipe slightly adapted from Melissa Rubel for Food and Wine Annual Cookbook (2007)
In a small sauce pan over medium to high heat, combine sugar and water and bring to a boil. Do not stir!
Boil the syrup for 6-8 minutes or until a deep amber caramel forms.
Remove from heat and stir in cream. Pour the caramel sauce into a large mug or heatproof cup and let cool slightly. Place in the microwave or on top of the stove to keep slightly warm.
*Tattooed Martha’s secret ingredient: A capful of Sailor Jerry Rum. Stir into caramel sauce after you add the cream.
Cover a large rimmed baking sheet with foil and place in the oven. Preheat to 425 degrees F.
Cut up pears and place in a bowl with melted butter. Sprinkle with a pinch of coarse salt and toss until pears are evenly coated.
Spread the pears out on the preheated baking sheet and bake for approximately 15 minutes or until golden around the edges and tender. Stir them about halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and transfer pears to a large plate to cool for 10 minutes.
Chop up pecans and set aside.
Once pears have cooled, divide them between 2 bowls or sundae cups. I like to drizzle a bit of the caramel sauce down the inside edges of the cups first. Add 2-3 scoops of vanilla ice cream on top of the pears, drizzle with more caramel sauce, and top with chopped pecans. Serve right away!
Enjoy!
