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Winter Fruit Compote with Honey-Whipped Goat Cheese Crème
  • Compote:
  • 2 1/2 cups water
  • 4 chai tea bags, preferably green tea
  • 3/4 cup dried Calimyrna or Mission figs, trimmed and halved (4 oz.)
  • 3/4 cup dried apricots, halved (4 oz.)
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 3 strips fresh lemon zest (about 21/2" x 1")
  • 3 (8 oz.) firm ripe pears, peeled, halved, cored and sliced crosswise
  • 1/2 cup dried tart cherries
  • 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 tsp. freshly ground
  • Black pepper (optional)
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  • Crème:
  • 4 oz. Ile de France® Goat Cheese, at room temperature (1 cup crumbled)
  • 3 Tbsp. honey
  • 1 tsp. freshly grated lemon rind
  • 3 Tbsp. of heavy cream
  • 1/3 cup light sour cream or Mascarpone
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  1. Prepare compote: In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Remove from heat, add tea bags and steep 4 minutes. Remove tea bags and discard.
  2. Add figs, apricots, honey, sugar and lemon zest to pan. Bring to a bare simmer and cook for 8 minutes. Stir in pears and cherries, pressing down fruit to submerge. Return to simmer and cook until pears are just tender, about 4-8 minutes (depending on ripeness of pears). Bosc or Bartlett pears are a good variety, as they cook well and hold their shape nicely. Cover and set aside to cool for at least 2 hours. Stir in lemon juice and pepper. (Can be served warm, cool or at room temperature). (Yield: 4 cups).
  3. Prepare crème: In a small bowl, cream together goat cheese, heavy cream, honey and lemon zest with flexible spatula until smooth. Add sour cream and fold together until combined. Serve with compote. Decorate with a few goat cheese crumbles. (Yield: 3/4 cup).