I have called this dish Camembert Rouge because of all the intense ruby hues of the balsamic glaze, the poached pears and the caramelised onion and cranberries. This recipe pairs perfectly with this column about Camembert and its older sibling, Brie.

Ingredients

1 Dalewood Winelands Chef’s Camembert

4 or 5 sprigs of fresh rosemary

2 or 3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thinly

2 pears, peeled but leave the cores in

1 cup De Krans Espresso fortified wine

⅓ cup flaked almonds

1 red onion, peeled and sliced in thin rounds

½ cup of dried cranberries

½ cup good quality balsamico di Modena

A little Klein Nektar olive oil or other quality product

Method

Put the sliced red onion and cranberries in a small, heavy pot with the balsamic vinegar. Reduce on a moderate heat until the onions are cooked and the liquid has become an insanely syrupy, sticky sauce.

Peel the pears and put them snugly in a pot just big enough to hold them, with the fortified wine. Poach them on a gentle heat, turning with two wooden spoons so that they cook and take on colour evenly, until just tender. About half an hour, max. The wine should have turned beautifully syrupy.

Score the Camembert in a diamond pattern. Insert slivers of 2 garlic cloves. Insert rosemary sprigs. Drizzle a little olive oil over. Bake at 180℃ for 15 to 20 minutes. Top with toasted flaked almonds and drizzle with a little of the glaze from the pears.

Serve the pears with the rest of the reduced fortified wine, and the red onion and cranberry relish on the side. Rounds of toasted ciabatta are all you need to finish it off. DM/TGIFood

Tony Jackman is Galliova Food Champion 2021. His book, foodSTUFF, is available in the DM Shop. Buy it here. 

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