Roasted Vanilla Pear Bellini
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A batch brunch recipe that sparkles with flavour
Recipe sponsored by St. Regis Wines
Roasted pears are the coziest food you can imagine, but are also pretty amazing in a Bellini! This recipe makes your house smell like you’re baking cookies, and your kids will come downstairs and ask if they can have some. It’s a perfect recipe to serve for a winter brunch, as it marries the fun and bubbly St. Regis non-alcoholic Brut with the fall and winter flavours of roasted pear.
What is a bellini?
Bellini’s are the classic brunch drink, and for the uninitiated, it’s made by combining Prosecco, a dry Italian sparkling wine, with pureed white peaches or peach nectar. It originated in Italy, created by Giuseppe Cipriani, the founder of Harry's Bar in Venice, in the mid-20th century. You can often find them offered on menus in frozen/slushy formats, but the traditional version is chilled and gently stirred.
Can you make a non-alcoholic Bellini?
Why not? Non-alcoholic sparkling wines are the stars of the zero-proof category. We have a list of our favourite sparkling wines here. For this recipe, we picked one of our go-to favourites the St. Regis Brut. It’s not only dry, bubbly and very tasty, but it's accessible and wallet-friendly. In Canada you can find it in most grocery stores at an affordable price point, and on Amazon.ca in a two-bottle value pack. In the U.S. you can often find it at Total Wine or other liquor and grocery stores.
Serving bellinis for brunch
This is a great recipe for brunch because you batch the main ingredient - pear puree - in advance. And you can add more pears to the oven very easily. Don’t get scared off by the cooking part - it’s worth it and you can always add extra pears to the oven, and then eat them with vanilla ice cream if you want!
Preparing pears for roasting
Some people just blend up soft pears with pear juice for the puree, and other people use a microwave to soften them first. The true beauty of this pear puree is that roasting them in the oven brings out their natural sweetness, and caramelizes the vanilla and maple syrup glaze. Just make sure to peel the pears or else you’ll have to use a sieve to filter out all the bits of peel!
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 pears, skinned, cored and quartered
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp cinnamon
1 bottle St. Regis Brut non-alcoholic sparkling wine, chilled
To prepare the roasted pear puree:
Peel, quarter and core 2 pears - we used 1 Bosc pear and one Crimson pear, which just gives this recipe a nice flavour variety
In a separate glass, mix 1 tbsp vanilla, 1 tbsp maple syrup and a tsp of cinnamon powder
Lay the quartered pears on parchment paper in a glass roasting dish (or a sheet pan, but it burns more that way)
Brush the mixture of vanilla, syrup and cinnamon onto the pear halves so they’re covered on all sides.
Roast at 425 for about 25-30 minutes - but keep an eye on them, so they don’t overcook or burn
When cooled, add pears plus ¼ cup of water in a blender and process until smooth.
Remove from the blender into an airtight container and cool in the refrigerator overnight.
To serve:
Add a generous scoop of pear puree to a coupe glass.
Top with St Regis Sparkling Non-Alcoholic Brut and then gently stir to combine.
Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon or a cinnamon stick.
Roasted Vanilla Pear Bellini
Ingredients
- 2 pears, skinned, cored and quartered
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 bottle St. Regis Brut non-alcoholic sparkling wine, chilled
Instructions
- Peel, quarter and core 2 pears - we used 1 Bosc pear and one Crimson pear, which just gives this recipe a nice flavour variety
- In a separate glass, mix 1 tbsp vanilla, 1 tbsp maple syrup and a tsp of cinnamon powder
- Lay the quartered pears on parchment paper in a glass roasting dish (or a sheet pan, but it burns more that way)
- Brush the mixture of vanilla, syrup and cinnamon onto the pear halves so they’re covered on all sides.
- Roast at 425 for about 25-30 minutes - but keep an eye on them, so they don’t overcook or burn
- When cooled, add pears plus ¼ cup of water in a blender and process until smooth.
- Remove from the blender into an airtight container and cool in the refrigerator overnight.
- Add a generous scoop of pear puree to a coupe glass.
- Top with St Regis Sparkling Non-Alcholic Brut and then gently stir to combine.
- Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon or a cinnamon stick.
