Recipe Box, Blue Cheese & Pecan Baked Pears

the Painted Apron

5 years ago

Wait!

Do not fear the blue cheese!

I will give you other cheesy options for this easy and elegant holiday side dish!

This dish will go beautifully with holiday turkey, ham, chicken or lamb!

Start with ripe pears {Anjou, Bosc, French Apple} and slice in half lengthwise

Cut a little slice off the back/bottom side so pear will sit flat

Scoop out the seeds leaving a nice cavity for stuffing and remove the stems

Place pears cut side down in skillet with melted butter

Cook until they begin to color then turn them over

If your skillet is oven proof, the pears can now go straight into the oven

or transfer pears to a greased baking dish

Put pears in a 400 degree oven for 7 minutes or until easily pierced with a knife

If your pears are really ripe this won’t take long

Fill the cavities with generous amounts of blue cheese crumbles and pecans**

You can also use flavored goat cheese like cranberry or blueberry

Crispy bacon would be wonderful too 😋

**I used packaged candied pecans, if you want to make your own see Praline Pecan recipe here

At this point you can refrigerate the pears, covered until dinner time

The pears might discolor a little but it won’t matter in the end

Bring pears to room temperature then broil for 2-3 minutes until cheese melts

Note: tuck your nuts under the cheese or remove them before broiling so they don’t burn

We had these with a fabulous vegetable risotto which I will share next week

This recipe was adapted from Dorothy’s The New Vintage Kitchen, you can see her recipe here

Blue Cheese & Pecan Baked Pears

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword baked pears, baked pears with bleu cheese and pecans, holiday side dish, pears

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 3

Plan on 1/2 pear per serving
ripe pears such as Anjou, bosc, French butter {do not use Bartlett, they loose their shape when cooked}
blue cheese crumbles or flavored goat cheese
pecans or walnuts I used candied pecans from Trader Joe’s
1 Tablespoon butter or more if doing multiple pears

Melt butter in skillet. Slice pears in half, no need to peel them, scoop out seed cavity and remove stem ends.
Cut a small slice off the pear back so pears will sit level. Place pears cut side down in skillet and cook over medium high 2-3 minutes until pear begins to color.
Turn over and place skillet in oven {if it’s oven proof} or transfer pears to a baking dish.*
Bake in a 425 degree oven for 7 minutes, until pear is soft when pierced with a knife.
Fill cavities with blue cheese or goat cheese, tucking nuts under so they don’t burn. Broil 2-3 minutes until cheese melts. Garnish with additional nuts and serve.