UKTV recipes
Alex Mackay from Food Uncut
Crisp meringues with deliciously sticky pears make Alex McKay' s indulgent dessert a real treat to look forward to

sponsored by Brittany Ferries

 

Caramelised comice pears with chestnut meringue

Method

 
1. Preheat the oven to 120C/gas ½ and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.

2. For the chestnut meringue, whip the egg whites to firm peaks and gradually add the sugar, whisking continuously, until firm and glossy.

3. Fold in the icing sugar and chopped chestnuts.

4. Dollop 4 oval spoonfuls of the meringue onto the lined tray and flatten each slightly with the back of the spoon. Sprinkle over the flaked almonds and dust with icing sugar. Bake for 2 hours - until dry and crisp. When cooked, leave to cool, with the oven door open.

5. For the pears, set the oven to190C/gas 5.

6. In a large ovenproof frying pan, melt the butter with the caster sugar and cook until golden. Add the pear quarters to the caramel and cook over a medium heat for a few minutes, until the pears are coloured by the caramel. Turn the pears over and roast in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until tender, but still hold their shape.

7. For the caramel sauce; dissolve the sugar in the water, and cook until you have a dark caramel. In a separate pan, bring the cream to the boil and pour the heated cream over the caramel - take care as it will splutter. Whisk for about 30 seconds over the heat, before adding the chestnuts. Remove the pan from the heat.

8. For the vanilla cream; lightly whip the cream with the sugar and vanilla seeds.

9. Serve the pears alongside the meringues, spoon over the caramel sauce and a little of the vanilla whipped cream.

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intermediate
 
Serves: 4
Prep: 30 min
Cook: 2 hrs
 
 

Ingredients


For the chestnut meringue

2 large egg whites
80g caster sugar
40g icing sugar, plus a little for dusting
10 cooked Chestnuts, peeled, finely chopped
40g flaked almonds

For the pears

25g unsalted Butter
60g caster sugar
2 large ripe Comice pears, peeled, quartered

For the sauce

125g caster sugar
125ml water
150ml whipping cream
12 whole cooked Chestnuts

For the vanilla cream

200ml double cream
1 tsp icing sugar
1 vanilla pod, seeds only
 

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