join us for a bake along with molly wilkinson

We wanted to try something new to get everyone excited for our upcoming February Box, My French Country Kitchen.

With everything going on in the world, we thought that it would be fun to bring a taste of French country living into your homes! So we have teamed up with pastry chef, Molly Wilkinson, for a live bake along!

Molly is a Texas-born pastry chef who received her certification from one of France’s most prestigious culinary schools, Le Cordon Bleu. She now lives in Versailles and teaches online baking classes that cater to all levels! If you love the art of French pastry and are looking for something new to do, we highly recommend trying one of her classes!

You can find a list of her classes HERE

For this bake along, we will be making delicious poached pears with a decadent chocolate sauce. It will be hosted on Sharon Santoni’s Instagram on January 13th at 2:00 pm Paris GMT+1/8:00 am EST.

Don’t worry if you miss the live- it will be available on all of our social media platforms shortly after. That way you can watch it at any time, at your own pace or to watch it again in the future!

Here is what you will need:

Red Wine Poached Pears in a chocolate Sauce
Serves 4-6 people

A delicious, easy French dessert that has mulled wine notes and a fruity sweetness. Serve with crème fraiche, whipped cream, ice cream, a chocolate sauce, or the liquid reduced down to a syrupy goodness.

Ingredients-
1 (750 ml) bottle of fruity red wine (ex Merlot, Bordeaux, Beaujolais, Cabernet)
3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
Peel of 1 orange, or 2 lemons, or 2 clementines
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1/4 tsp grated:ground nutmeg
1 star anise (optional)
4-6 firm barely ripe pears (ex Bosc, Anjou, Conference, or Williams but NOT Bartlett or Comice)
2/3 cup (160 ml) heavy cream
5 oz (120 g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (70% good quality chocolate)
2 tbsp (28 g) unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed

Equipment-
A saucepan large enough to hold the pears submerged in the liquid
Small-medium saucepan
Peeler
Whisk

Pour the wine into a large-medium saucepan that can hold all the pear fully submerged. Add the sugar, citrus peel, and spices. The bring to a boil.

While the liquid is coming to a boil, peel the pears. If you’d like, cut out the core at the base keeping the pear intact.

Once a boil has been reached, turn the heat down to a low simmer and add the pears. If needed, turn the pear in the liquid to fully and evenly poach.

Cook about 10-20 minutes until a knife can be inserted into the pears with no resistance. *Cooking time will depend on the size of your pears, the type, and firmness.

Remove from liquid.

To serve with the cooking liquid as a sauce, strain after the pears have been cooked and return to the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until reduced in half.

Storage: Can be made up to three days in advance. Store the pears in an airtight container covered in the liquid in the fridge. Serve warm or cool.

For the chocolate sauce:
Roughly chop the chocolate and place in a bowl. Heat the cream until it just starts to boil. Pour over the chocolate and wait a couple of seconds for the chocolate to start melting.

Whisk together until the chocolate is completely melted. Then whisk in the butter.
Pour over the pears to serve.

To prepare for the live, just simply have all of your ingredients measured out and we will prepare the pears together. We hope to see you there!

After the bake along, make sure to share all your beautiful dishes with us by tagging @mfchbox and @mollyjwilk

If you are now as excited as we are for the February Box, make sure to reserve yours soon if you haven’t already! There is only a limited number available and our past boxes have sold out. Click HERE to order!