Poached pear puff pastry is the perfect dinner party dessert! It features pears poached in sweet vanilla cinnamon liquid and baked in a flakey puff pastry crust.
This is the dessert you serve to people who swear they don’t like fruit desserts. Whole pears simmer in a vanilla-cinnamon-honey syrup until silky, almost custard-like, then get wrapped in puff pastry and baked until golden and flaky.
It looks like it came from a restaurant kitchen, but it’s genuinely simple to pull off. Totally perfect for a dinner party where you want a showstopper without the stress.
Which pears are best for poaching?
Use pears that are ripe but still slightly firm. Check by gently pressing the neck near the stem. Gently pinch the pear’s neck with your thumb and index finger (pointer finger). If it yields to gentle pressure, it’s good to go!
- Bartlett: the classic all-purpose choice, holds shape well
- Starkrimson: bright red skin, very juicy, handles cooking well
- Anjou: firm and versatile, great both raw and cooked
Underripe pears won’t be juicy enough, and overripe ones will turn mushy once poached. For more information about pear varieties and ripeness, check out these posts: No Bake Pear Cheesecake and Pear Rice Pudding with Maple.
How to prepare pears for poaching?
- Ensure pears are ripe!
- Slice about 1/4-inch off the bottom of pear to create a flat, stable surface.
- Use a corer, melon baller or measuring teaspoon to core pear (meaning: remove seeds and hard bits).
- Use a peeler or knife to peel skin off pear, leaving stem intact.
Pear Poaching Liquid (and Cartouche Trick!)
Pears can be poached in a variety of liquids: juice or cider, infused water, liquor or wine! For this recipe, the pears are poached in a sweet mixture of water, sugar, honey, cinnamon sticks, and vanilla bean.
Simmer the pears for about 15 minutes, flipping halfway. Covering the pot with a cartouche (a parchment paper lid with a hole cut in the center) keeps the pears fully submerged while still letting steam escape, so they cook evenly without drying out.
I learned this trick in culinary school. It’s a small step that makes a real difference, and it works just as well for poaching fish or braising meat.
After poaching, let the pears cool in the liquid, then refrigerate them submerged overnight. This extra chill time firms up their structure and lets them soak up more flavor. Don’t skip it!
Baker’s Tip:
Don’t toss the poaching liquid. Reduce it into a syrup for pancakes or yogurt, stir it into tea or coffee, sweeten mulled wines, or use it to moisten cake layers.
How to assemble puff pastry pears:
- Remove chilled pears from poaching liquid. Allow to pears to drain on paper-towel lined plate.
- Brush pear all over with egg wash.
- Cover bottom of pear with a square piece of puff pastry. Encase body of pear with strips of puff pastry, leaving the stem exposed.
*If you need to use more than one puff pastry strip, use the egg wash as a glue to attach new strip to previous strip.
Lightly brush exposed puff pastry with egg wash before baking. This will ensure the puff pastry bakes up flakey and golden brown on the side.
Give pears ample space to allow to air flow during baking. Also, rotate baking pan midway through baking to ensure even cooking. Allow baked pear puff pastry to slightly cool (about 5 minutes) before serving.
Serving and Make-Ahead Tips
- Best served warm, same day since the puff pastry softens as it sits.
- Finish with a drizzle of honey, a dusting of powdered sugar, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- Make-ahead: poach the pears up to 3 days ahead and refrigerate. Assemble and bake just before serving so the puff pastry stays cold and flaky.
Poached Pear Puff Pastry
Ingredients
Poached Pears:
- 4 medium pears
- 5 cups water
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 3 Tablespoon honey
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- ½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise
Egg Wash:
- 1 large egg
- ½ Tablespoon heavy cream, or whole milk
- pinch kosher salt
Assembly:
- 1 sheet store bought frozen puff pastry, thawed*
Instructions
Poached Pears:
- Prepare cartouche, also known as parchment paper lid.*
- Slice off about ¼-inch from bottom of pear to create a stable flat surface. Core pears from the bottom. Peel pears, leaving stems intact. Set aside.
- In a medium heavy-bottomed sauce pot bring combine water, sugar, honey, cinnamon sticks, and vanilla bean. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
- Gently submerge pears on their side in pot. Cover with cartouche. Simmer for about 15 minutes, flip pears halfway through cooking, until pears are tender. NOTE: Be careful not to overcook pears. Pears will continue to "cook" after simmering.*
- Remove pot from heat. Cool pears to room temperature in the poaching liquid. Transfer to airtight container and let pears soak in liquid overnight in fridge.
Egg Wash:
- In a small bowl, whisk together egg, heavy cream, and salt until smooth. Set aside.
Assembly:
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Remove chilled pears from poaching liquid. Place pears on paper-towel lined plate. Set aside. NOTE: poaching liquid can be discarded or saved for other applications.
- Unroll or unfold thawed puff pastry sheet. Cut out four squares to cover bottom of pears. Slice remaining sheet into ½-inch wide strips.
- Place pears on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush pears all over with egg wash. Encase bottom of pear with square puff pastry.
- Beginning at the bottom, wrap puff pastry strip around pear, leaving stem exposed. Repeat with remaining pears. Space pears at least 3-inch apart from each other.
- Lightly brush puff pastry exterior with egg wash. Bake for 30 minutes until puff pastry is golden brown.
- Allow to cool for 5-8 minutes. Transfer to serving plate. Garnish with drizzle of honey or dust with powdered sugar before serving. Enjoy warm!
Notes
- Suggested pear varieties: Barlett, Starkrimson, or Anjou. Make sure pears are slightly firm and have just turned ripe. Overripe pears will turn very soft and mushy.
- To test poached pears for doneness: pierce pear with a pairing knife or fork. The pear should be tender. However, it should NOT be soft and mushy.
- To make a cartouche: Cut a parchment circle to fit inside sauce pot. Cut a small round in center of parchment paper.
- Poaching liquid can be used as a simple syrup for teas, coffee or cocktails. See blog post for more details.
- Puff pastry is usually sold frozen in folded sheets or rolled up. For best results, thaw in the fridge overnight before use. If possible, use all-butter puff pastry instead of those made with vegetable oils.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Why does it have to be stored in an air right container? I need to double the recipe but u don’t have an airtight container large enough
Airtight container prevents unwanted smells and flavors to seep into the poached pears or the poaching liquid. You can tightly cover a large bowl/container with plastic wrap.
Do you think these could be assembled then travel to our Thanksgiving’s host and bake there?
You can poach the pears and store in the fridge up to three days before serving. Unless your Thanksgiving location is within walking distance, I would assemble the puff pastry at your host’s kitchen.
The key to flakey puff pastry is cold temperature. The thawed puff pastry sheet should still feel chilled when wrapped around the pear. If the pastry is too warm, it will begin to expel fat, causing the baked puff pastry to be dense (not flakey). Assembling the pears ahead of time will make the texture of puff pastry a bit gummy when baked. I hope that helps!
Hi there, would you recommend Bosc pears? I usually cook with these as they hold their shape better and am interested that you don’t recommend them. Amazing looking recipe, can’t wait to try it!!
Hi! If I cannot get a hold of vanilla bean, could I use vanilla extract? If so, how much?
Hi! I highly recommend using vanilla beans. However, if you’d like to use vanilla extract- add 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract in step 5 after you have removed the pot from the heat. Let the pears steep and cool in the mixture.
Don’t simmer or heat the vanilla extract. Too much heat will alter its flavor.