Thanksgiving Poached Pears (a Dessert for Non-Pie People)

This dessert feels festive, fancy, and just indulgent enough to make everyone at the table swoon. No pie crust stress required.

If making pie feels like too much this Thanksgiving, or if you’re just not a pie person (not a crime), these red wine poached pears are here for you. They’re stunningly elegant, fairly easy to pull off, gluten-free, and if you want to call them almost healthy, I won’t stop you. Plus, they’re make-ahead magic—the kind of dessert that gets better as it sits. Refrigerate them in the poaching liquid overnight, and they’ll turn a deep, dramatic ruby red that looks almost too beautiful to eat. Almost. You can use the leftover reduced wine sauce in cocktails, mocktails, on yogurt, pancakes, ice cream, etc….

You can also use the poached pears in a savory application like this crostini with ricotta. If you’re going this route, use only 1/2 cup sugar in the poaching liquid.

For my fellow non-drinkers/sober friends, the alcohol in the wine cooks out completely, leaving behind a beautifully spiced, subtly sweet sauce. If you’re not comfortable with that, use any bottle of non alcoholic red wine, like this one.