Pear-Saffron Compote

Massage the vanilla pods until soft, then halve them and scrape out the seeds. In a pot, combine 500 ml (17 oz) of water, white wine, granulated sugar, lemon juice, saffron, the scraped vanilla pods and seeds, and cloves. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Peel the pears, halve them, remove the cores, and cut the pears into 3 cm (1.18 in) thick wedges. Place the pear wedges in cold water to prevent browning.

Remove the pears from the water and layer them in jars. Divide the vanilla pods and cloves among the jars and pour the hot syrup over them. Seal the jars.

Place them on a baking tray. Pour boiling water into the tray to a depth of about a finger's width and cook the compote at 130 °C/266 °F (top/bottom heat) for 1 hour. Alternatively, steam at 95°C/203 °F for 45 minutes. Let cool.