Title: Pera Bella Helena
Bon Appetit January 1992
Poire Belle Helene was originally French, created by Escoffier

And didn't have hazelnut anything, as I recall.
Maybe almonds, either flavoring or toasted slivered.

Of course, it's a conservative dish - Escoffier was
looking pretty far backward naming a dish after
Offenbach - the supposed authorities claim he
invented it to commemorate the premiere of the
opera - which took place when he was still peeling
potatoes in the army.

Here is my favorite pear recipe. I've made it
with the sabayon but leaving off the crouton
and meringue treatment, which to me is gilding
the lily. Note that it's done with red wine, not
white, which improves it a Lot. Also, no chocolate
silliness to mess with the fruit flavors.

Julia Child's pears poached in red wine
categories: celebrity, interpreted, dessert
servings: 8

h - Poaching the Pears (can be made several days ahead)
1 c sugar
1 1/2 c dry red wine
1 1/2 c water
4 whole cloves
1/2 orange, zest of
1 ts vanilla
4 firm, ripe pears
h - The Sabayon
2 c of the pear-poaching syrup
3 egg yolks
2 ts cornstarch
2 Tb more of the poaching syrup
2 Tb butter
4 Tb orange liqueur
h - The Canapes (made up to an hour in advance)
2 lb white bread (I used whole wheat)
2 Tb butter
h - The Meringue
3 egg whites
1 lg pn salt
1 lg pn cream of tartar
1/2 c sugar
1/4 ts vanilla

Poaching the Pears (can be made several days ahead).
Stir the sugar, wine and water together in the pan.
Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the cloves,
zests and vanilla. Simmer for 20 min, then remove
from heat.

Peel the pears and halve, lengthwise. Remove the
stem lines and cores. Drop each half into the wine
syrup - it should just barely cover the pears. Add
more liquid and sugar if necessary. Bring to almost
a simmer and poach, uncovered for 10 to 15 min until
the pears are soft. Do not let the syrup come to a
simmer. Remove from heat and let the pears cool for
at least 20 min and up to 1 day in the syrup. Julia
says you can leave the pears in the syrup for several
days to absorb the syrup.

You can stop here and enjoy the pears all by themselves
or get creative and serve them with some Gorgonzola or
blue cheese or you can continue and serve with some
Sabayon sauce and meringue.

Making the sauce sabayon.
Rapidly boil down the cooking syrup in a small saucepan
until reduced to 1 c (about 5 min).

In a second saucepan beat the egg yolks and cornstarch
to blend smoothly. Beat in 2 Tb cool cooking syrup.
In a thin stream, stir in the reduced syrup. Set over
medium heat and stir slowly with a wooden spoon until
the syrup coats the spoon. Do not let the syrup come
to a simmer Remove from heat Mix in the butter and
orange liqueur.

The Canapes (made up to an hour in advance).
Cut the crusts off the bread and cut each slice into
quarters. Heat the butter over a medium-high heat in
a small pan. Saute the bread squares until golden
brown in the butter. Set in a greased baking pan.

The meringue.
Beat egg whites until foamy. Beat in salt and cream of
tartar until soft peaks are formed. Beat in the sugar
by the heaping teaspoon, leaving 30 sec between
additions. Beat in the vanilla. Continue beating for
several min until the egg whites are stiff and shiny.

Baking and Serving.

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Sprinkle some sugar over the Canapes. Place a pear
half, hollow side up, on top of each. Fill hollow
with the sauce Sabayon. Cover the pears with the
meringue. If desired, spread sliced almonds over
each pear. Sprinkle powdered sugar over each pear.
Bake 5 min or until the meringue is golden brown
Serve with some lukewarm Sabayon sauce, passed
separately.

adapted from Julia Child, Mastering the Art of French
Cooking by Keith Prickett, makingbananapancakes.com
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