Pears In Orange Cream -

Pears In Orange Cream

Ingredients

4-6 ripe pears
½ pint water
3 tablespoons granulated sugar

For custard

½ pint milk
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon arrowroot
1 teaspoon caster sugar

For orange cream

1 large orange
5 sugar lumps
¼ pint double cream

Method

Peel and halve the pears and scoop out cores with a teaspoon. Place pears at once in the water, with the sugar, rounded side down. Cook gently until pears are tender and leave to cool in syrup.

Remove outer rind from half the orange, shred, and cook in boiling water until tender. Drain and rinse well with cold water.

To prepare custard: scald milk in a pan; cream egg yolks, arrowroot and sugar in a bowl until light. Tip on milk and return to the pan. Stir over a gentle heat until custard coats the back of a spoon, but do not boil. Strain and allow to cool.

Rub the lump sugar over the other half of orange to remove all the zest (each lump should be saturated with the oil from the skin). Place these lumps in a small basin and pour over 5 tablespoons of strained orange juice; stir until sugar is dis­solved. Lightly whip the cream, stir in the orange syrup and the cold custard.

Drain pears, dish up and coat with the orange cream. Sprinkle over the prepared orange rind.

Related food category:

• Fresh Fruit Dessert