Poire Belle Hélène (Pears with Chocolate Sauce)

Nov 3, 2026 · By VanillaGoods

Dessert Ice cream frozen desserts Vanilla: Beans Easy

Poire Belle Hélène (Pears with Chocolate Sauce)

Tender vanilla-poached pears set beside cold vanilla ice cream and masked with hot dark chocolate sauce. Makes 4 servings in about 1 hr 45 min.

Prep 20 min

Cook 25 min

Cooling 1 hr

Total 1 hr 45 min

Servings 4

Diet Gluten free

Ingredients

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servings

1 ¾ lb (800 g)firm ripe pears, peeled, halved and cored
3 cups (700 ml)water
¾ cup (150 g)sugar
1vanilla bean, split
1 tbsplemon juice
5 ½ oz (150 g)dark chocolate, chopped
½ cup (120 ml)heavy cream
1 tbsp (15 g)butter
3 ½ cups (500 g)vanilla ice cream

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Instructions

Simmer the water, sugar, vanilla bean and lemon juice for 5 minutes to make a syrup.
Add the pears and poach gently, covered, 15 to 20 minutes until a knife slides in easily. Cool in the syrup.
Warm the cream until steaming, pour over the chocolate, let stand 2 minutes, then stir in the butter until glossy.
Drain the pears. Put a scoop of ice cream in each of 4 chilled dishes and arrange the pears beside it.
Spoon the warm chocolate sauce over just before serving.

Tips

Choose firm pears like Bosc or Bartlett so they hold their shape.
Poach at barely a simmer.
Chill the dishes and serve right away.
Refrigerate the poached fruit; keep ice cream frozen.

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Recipe FAQ

How long does it take to make poire belle hélène (pears with chocolate sauce)?

Plan on 20 minutes of prep and 25 minutes of cooking, plus 1 hour to chill. The recipe makes 4 servings.

How should I store poire belle hélène (pears with chocolate sauce)?

Keep poached pears in the syrup refrigerated up to 3 days; make the sauce fresh.

Can I make poire belle hélène (pears with chocolate sauce) ahead?

Yes. It needs time to chill and set, so it is a good one to make the day before you serve it.

Can I use a different form of vanilla?

Yes. This recipe uses 1 vanilla bean, split. Each teaspoon of pure vanilla extract can be swapped for 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, the seeds of half a vanilla bean, or 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla powder. Paste and seeds add the classic dark specks.

Serve it with dessert wine.

Estimated · per serving

Nutrition

Per serving = 1 of 4 servings this recipe makes.

642 Calories / serving

26.6g Fat

100.2g Carbs

5.6g Protein

86.2g Sugar

Whole recipe (4 servings): ~2568 cal · 106g fat · 401g carbs · 22g protein · 345g sugar

Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.