• 1 bottle dry red wine , such as Cabernet Sauvignon
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 vanilla bean , seeds scraped and saved
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 Bosc pears , peeled

Combine the red wine, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and bay leaf in a 15-quart stockpot. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes.

Place the pears in the liquid; add enough water to cover the pears. The pears will float; keep them submerged by setting a lid smaller than the circumference of the stockpot on top of them. Bring the liquid back to a bare simmer.

Cook the pears until they can be easily pierced with the tip of a paring knife, about 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool pears, then store in their poaching liquid. (Pears can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

When ready to serve, remove the pears from the liquid. Pour the poaching liquid into a saucepan and boil until syrupy, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour over the pears. Serve with whipped cream, crème fraìche, or yogurt, if desired.