Tuesday Tastings :: Roasted Pears with Ricotta

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As summer approaches, I’m more and more into the idea of serving desserts that require little-to-no cooking and just a tiny bit of assembly. Especially after preparing all the other components of a dinner party, dessert should be easy and quick… and luckily, some of the most delicious sweets also happen to be the simplest. A few of my favorites? Sorbet and macerated berries…squares of really good dark chocolate with fresh clementines…grilled (store bought) poundcake and peaches…espresso poured over vanilla gelato (affogato!) And roasted pears. They’re such a great addition to a cheese board or served over vanilla bean ice cream or on their own with a little caramel sauce. For our Moroccan-themed date night a couple weeks ago, I wanted to incorporate some of Morocco’s signature flavors like honey, orange and  pine nuts, and then add a unique twist with a lightly-sweet ricotta cream. Keep reading for the recipe, and a few more lovely images by Kate LeSueur…

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Serve with steaming cups of traditional Moroccan mint tea, or add a floral note with dried rosebuds like I did.

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Roasted Pears with Ricotta Cream & Pine Nuts

*serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 or 3 firm but ripe pears
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup fresh ricotta (or store-bought whole milk ricotta)
• zest and juice of 1 orange
• 1/4 cup honey, divided
• kosher salt
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• crackers, lightly sweet cookies or flatbread for serving… I love these cinnamon tortas!

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Quarter the pears, and remove the core, leaving the stem still attached if possible.
2. In a bowl, toss the quartered pears with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast until just tender, but still with a little bite.
3. Meanwhile, toast pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat. When they start to turn golden, remove and let cool.
4. In a blender, combine ricotta, orange juice, zest and 2 tablespoons honey. Blend on medium until smooth and frothy.
5. In each of four bowls, place a couple pieces of crackers or tortas, then arrange 2 pear quarters on top. Divide ricotta cream evenly over pears in each bowl, then sprinkle pine nuts and drizzle remainder of honey over top.

*photos by Kate LeSueur