Peel the pear, cut into quarters and deseed. Mix all the ingredients for the poached pear, bring to a boil and simmer on low till the pear is soft. Keep aside.

This pear crostata is simple yet sophisticated, with fresh fruit poached in Prosecco and layered over creamy ricotta inside a folded pastry shell. Our recipe yields two crostatas and is easy to make ...

Set pan aside to cool completely. Gently remove the pears from the liquid and slice. For the salad, in a large bowl, whisk ...

This is one of Jenny's favourite starters – fresh pears, a light creamy blue-veined cheese, figs and a few mixed salad leaves. This can be served as a garland on a large plate with crusty bread ...

Nevertheless, they all share a spectacular crunchiness, which makes them ideal for winter salads like the one below from Iron Chef and Asian-pear aficionado Masaharu Morimoto. --Robin Raisfeld ...