1bottle semi-dry white winesuch as Emerald Reisling
1/4cupbrandy
1/4sugar
2strips of orange zest
1-inchpiece of fresh gingerpeeled and sliced
2cinnamon sticks
10whole cloves
8firm ripe pears
Juice of 2 oranges
Instructions
In a pot big enough to hold the pears snugly, put all of the ingredients except for the pears. Bring the liquid up to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the pears, cover the pan, and gently poach the pears for about 30 minutes until the pears are soft, but not mushy. Turn off the heat and let cool.
The pears can be poached up to 2 days ahead and kept in the poaching liquid in the refrigerator.