Baked Ginger Pears

Serves 6

30 minutes or fewer

Baked apples are a customary cold-weather dessert in America, but the French are more likely to pop sweet winter pears in the oven. Pears bake up quite quickly, and can be accented with many different flavors, such as the crystallized ginger used here.

1 cup pear nectar
1 Tbs. honey
3 large ripe pears, halved lengthwise and cored
½ cup low-fat whipped cream cheese
4 Tbs. chopped crystallized ginger, divided
6 Tbs. crushed pecans, toasted

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line glass baking dish with foil.

2. Mix pear nectar and honey together, and pour into baking pan. Arrange pear halves in pan, cut side up, and cover pan loosely with foil.

3. Bake about 20 minutes, or until just tender.

4. Meanwhile, stir cream cheese and 2 Tbs. chopped ginger together. When pears are cooked, set on individual plates. Spoon 2 Tbs. cream cheese filling into each pear cavity. Sprinkle filled pears with remaining ginger and pecans, lightly pressing into filling. Spoon pan juices over top of each pear. Serve warm.