Poached Spiced Pear

Poached Spiced Pears
Usually when the recipe calls for wine or alcohol, I'd substitute with vinegar or grape juices. For this recipe though, I figured the three bottles of red wines have been sitting idly at the back of the kitchen shelf for nothing but collect dust. So, why not?
A note on the cinnamon: check the label to make sure you are getting true Ceylon cinnamon (C. Zeylanicum). The related spieces Cassia, (Cinnamomum aromaticum), Saigon cinnamon (Cinnamomum loureiroi), and Cinnamomum burmannii although are similar to true Ceylon cinnamon, they don't taste the same. I once bought some cinnamon barks that were less than half the price of Ceylon cinnamon. I could hardly stomach the tea. Ceylon cinnamon has a high fragrant aroma that the "imitations" don't. These impostors are sometimes distinguished from true cinnamon as "Chinese cinnamon", "Vietnamese cinnamon", or "Indonesian cinnamon".
I am very generous with cinnamon. Not only does it go to my morning smoothie, everyday, I also sprinkle it to chocolates, cereals, bagel, cream cheese, etc. Why not? Its high antioxidant potential is beneficial to oxidative stress related to many illnesses in human. A friend with Type 2 Diabetes mellitus also swears by the pharmacological effects of cinnamon. It's the only condiment in the kitchen that I need replacing often.

Ingredients:
(Serves 4)
4 ripe pears, peeled, quartered, core and stalk removed
100mL red wine
1/2 cinnamon stick (or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon)
1 teaspoon ground mixed spice
50gram sugar

1. Heat wine, sugar and spices over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Add the pears. Cover and heat gently for 20 minutes. Stirring occasionally to coat pears with sauce.
3. Remove pears to a bowl. Let the liquid simmer for another 10 minutes. It will thicken into a syrup. Pour over pears and allow to cool for a couple hours.
4. There are a few ways to dress the pears (cold or warm):

• with sour cream
• as an accompaniment to goat cheese, Camembert or Brie with salad
• with raspberry (as I did)