Well this recipe wins the prize for the longest recipe name ever! It came about at the Cambridge Farmers' Market where I was chatting with our friend Jan from Bellefield Cultured Butter about recipes. The idea for a miso butterscotch came about and I reckoned I could make a miso caramel with honey. Turns out it works! Pears were in season at the markets too, and our local raw milk supplier also delivers cream to our doorstep so the ingredients are super local and well sustainable. I must say, I'm pretty chuffed with the result. This caramel would be great with loads of other things, and could be cooked down more to make it thicker.
We are lucky enough to be able to source this amazing cultured miso butter at our Farmer's Market, but it's also available in Farro Fresh and Moore Wilsons, one of the many delicious cultured butters that Bellefield Produce in Cambridge. They are well worth checking out!
Of course, you could probably use regular butter and add about a quarter of a teaspoon of miso paste, but promise you it won't be as good as Bellefield's!
Ingredients
4 large pears
2 cups red wine
2 cup water
1 teaspoon pink peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick
3 star anise
1 tablespoon honey
50g Bellefield cultured miso butter (Gold award winning, did I mention?)
2 tablespoons honey
80ml cream
vanilla ice cream to serve
Method
To poach the pears, peel and de-core the pears. Add the red wine, water, first measure of honey and the spices to a large pot. Heat until gently simmering and then stand the pears in the pot. You want the simmering liquid to come about half way up the pears; if it doesn't, add a bit more water or wine. Cover with a lid and leave to poach for about 15 minutes; or until the pears feel slightly soft when you insert a sharp knife into one. Remove from heat and set aside to cool while you make the caramel.
To make the caramel, put the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Once it has melted, add the honey and stir it in. The mixture will froth. Once the honey has melted in, add the cream and let the caramel simmer for about 3 minutes, stirring often, until it just starts to darken. Then remove from the heat.
Add a pear to a dish, with a big scoop of ice cream and pour plenty of caramel sauce over. Enjoy! (Maybe don't tell your doctor you ate this!)
