The sweetest gifts come from the heart, but the tastiest come from the oven. Terri Hart, the Chef-Owner of Spotted Hen Catering in Los Angeles, and a Territory partner recommends these simple and elegant poached pears if you're looking to make something special for this gal/pal/val-entine’s day.

Ingredients
750-ml bottle Moscato or other sweet dessert wine

1 cinnamon stick, broken in 1/2

1 cup honey

3/4-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, and finely chopped

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

6 small, firm, ripe Anjou pears, peeled

1. In a saucepan large enough to hold all the pears, combine the wine, cinnamon stick halves, honey, and ginger. Scrape in the seeds from the vanilla bean and add the bean and seeds to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until the honey has melted. Add the pears and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally, until the pears are tender. Remove the pears from the liquid and let them cool.
2. Continue to simmer the liquid until it thickens and is reduced by half, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Remove the cinnamon stick halves and the vanilla bean and discard.
3. Place each pear on a small serving plate. Drizzle with the reduced honey-ginger syrup.