Baked Pears Feta Honey Cranberries (Print Page)
Tender baked pears stuffed with creamy feta, honey and tart cranberries, finished with lemon zest and a mint garnish.
# What You Need:
→ Pears
01 - 4 ripe but firm pears
→ Filling
02 - 3.5 oz feta cheese, crumbled
03 - 3 tbsp dried cranberries
04 - 2 tbsp walnuts, roughly chopped (optional)
05 - 2 tbsp honey, plus extra for drizzling
06 - 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
07 - Zest of 1 lemon
→ Garnish
08 - Fresh mint leaves
# Directions:
01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
02 - Halve the pears lengthwise and scoop out the core and seeds using a spoon or melon baller, creating a small cavity in each half for the filling.
03 - In a small mixing bowl, combine the crumbled feta cheese, dried cranberries, chopped walnuts (if using), 2 tbsp honey, ground cinnamon, and lemon zest. Stir until evenly mixed.
04 - Arrange the pear halves cut side up in the prepared baking dish. Generously fill each cavity with the feta mixture, mounding slightly.
05 - Drizzle a little extra honey over the stuffed pears for added sweetness and glaze.
06 - Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pears are fork-tender and the edges are lightly caramelized.
07 - Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Garnish with fresh mint leaves and serve warm.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- It looks like you spent an hour on something that takes ten minutes of actual work.
- The salty sweet contrast between feta and honey will ruin plain desserts for you forever.
02 -
- Underripe pears will not soften enough in 25 minutes, so check your fruit by pressing near the stem before committing.
- Overfilling the cavities causes the cheese mixture to spill and burn on the parchment, so mound it high but keep it contained.
03 -
- A squeeze of lemon juice over the cut pears before filling keeps them from browning if you are prepping ahead.
- Serve these within ten minutes of leaving the oven, because the texture shifts from luscious to merely pleasant as they cool.