'V' Poached pears with florentine cream

1. 1

   Peel the pears, cut them in half and with a teaspoon , scoop out the cores.

2. 2

   Poach the pears in sugar water, with a squeeze of lemon to stop the pears going brown and a vanilla pod.

3. 3

   .you can add a little vanilla extract instead .

4. 4

   Slide the fruit into the syrup and leave to simmer for 15 - 20 minutes until the pears are tender to the point of a knife.

5. 5

   Let the pears cool in their syrup for a good hour, then lift them out and put them in a shallow dish in the fridge.

6. 6

   whip the cream softly - it should not be too stiff- then add the roughly chopped florentines.

7. 7

   Break the dark chocolate into small squares and melt in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water.

8. 8

   Just melt it down - don't stir it.

9. 9

   As soon as the chocolate has melted, turn off the heat, and fill the pears with florentine cream.

10. 10

    Trickle over the chocolate in thin zig zag lines, leave in the fridge for a few minutes to crisp.

11. 11

    A Nigel Slater recipe

* Per serving · 4 servings · Values may vary.