Yield: 4 servings

Recipe courtesy Executive Pastry Chef Jean Philip Maury, Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas

Ingredients:

Poached Pear:

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1 Hawaiian vanilla bean
1 stroke lemon zest
1 stroke orange zest
1/4 cinnamon stick
4 pears
1/2 lemon, juiced

Hawaiian Creme Brulee:

3/4 cup milk
2 Hawaiian vanilla beans
3/4 cup cream
7 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar

Candied Raspberry:

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon peeled, minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon minced lemon peel
1 vanilla bean
1/4 cup raspberries

Caramelized Pain Perdu:

4 slices brioche
1/4 cup clarified butter
1/2 cup Hawaiian Creme Brulee
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 quart vanilla bean ice cream

Instructions:

1. To make Spicy Poached Pears, in a saucepan, combine sugar, water, citrus zest and spices. Bring to a boil.
   
2. Cut about an inch from the top of the pears and place the tops in fresh water with lemon juice.
   
3. Peel the base of the pears with a spoon and make a cavity in the center by removing the seeds.
   
4. Poach pear bases in boiled syrup at 200F for an hour. Remove from heat. Refrigerate. After refrigerated cut a little off the bottom so the pears will sit up straight.
   
5. For the Hawaiian Creme Brulee, preheat oven to 300F.
   
6. In a saucepan, heat milk, beans and cream.
   
7. In a bowl, mix yolks with granulated sugar.
   
8. When milk mixture is hot, temper yolks by pouring a little of the hot mixture into the yolk mixture and mixing. Continue until temperature of yolks is at least warm.
   
9. Strain egg mixture back into saucepan.
   
10. Pour all but a half cup of the brulee mixture into a pan sitting in a water bath (bain marie).
    
11. Cook in preheated oven for 35 minutes.
    
12. Cool in the refrigerator and place in a small piping bag.
    
13. To make the Candied Raspberry, in saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil with ginger, lemon and vanilla. Boil just until the sugar completely dissolves.
    
14. Pour over raspberries and place in refrigerator.
    
15. For the Caramelized Pain Perdu, with a ring mold, cut a slice of brioche to form a circular shape. Heat some clarified butter in pan.
    
16. Dip brioche slices in reserved Hawaiian brulee mix and set in pan.
    
17. Sprinkle granulated sugar on top and fry brioche until golden. Turn over and sprinkle with granulated sugar until also golden.
    
18. Place fried brioche on a plate and set aside.

To plate, place a ring mold in the center of each plate and fill it with vanilla bean ice cream and level it flat with a spatula. Place a circular brioche above each serving of ice cream and then place poached pear over the brioche. With a spoon, put a little candied raspberry mixture into each pear cavity. With piping bag, fill remainder of each cavity with creme brulee. Mount a pear top on each filled pear base. Spoon more raspberry sauce around the dessert.

This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. Fine Living has not tested this recipe in the proportions indicated and therefore cannot make any representation as to the results.