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Baked Pear Fans

Beautiful, easy and elegant, this fruit dessert is festive enough to end a company meal—especially if you top the pear fan with a dollop of whipped, lightly sweetened mascarpone cheese. When you first put the pears in the baking pan don't try to fan them out. After they cook and soften you'll be able to fan them out easily, without breaking them.

2 pears, peeled, halved, and cored
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
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1. Heat oven to 375°F. To make pear fans: make 1/4-inch lengthwise slices along length of each half-pear, starting 1/3-inch from the stem end and cutting all the way down toward the rounded end.
2. Place butter in a 9-inch-square baking pan and melt in the oven. Add lemon juice, pepper, ginger, cinnamon, and 2 tablespoons water to butter, mix well. Place pears in the pan, rounded sides up. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake until pears are fork tender, about forty minutes; turn once halfway through baking time.
3. With a slotted spoon, transfer pear halves onto serving plates and carefully fan them out. Stir vanilla into sauce in pan. Place pan on stovetop and cook 1 minute to reduce slightly. Spoon sauce over pears. Serve warm or at room temperature.