Enhance Your Recipes With Unexpected Ingredients

(ARA) - Whether you’re looking to liven up your favorite soup, add a creamy twist to a newly-discovered dessert or lighten your grandmother’s old-fashioned pancake batter recipe, look no further than a few simple ingredients that can easily become a part of your culinary line-up.

One of these increasingly popular staples -- creme fraiche made with real milk offers an easy, flavorful, special touch to thicken soups, top fresh fruit, make custard creamy or give mashed potatoes more body. Creme fraiche also stays fresh for up to 12 weeks, making it a cost-effective staple to keep in your refrigerator and usable in multiple dishes.

Using creme fraiche as an added ingredient or a substitute to recipes is a surprisingly easy and inexpensive way to pep up many everyday meals, but it’s not the only secret to success. Try using these other dairy products as simple ingredient suggestions to bring out the best in your recipes:

* Fold ricotta cheese into pancake batter to make it lighter and fluffier.
* Drain low-fat yogurt through a coffee filter for a few hours and sweeten with honey for a rich-tasting, low-calorie dessert topping.
* For the most tender fried chicken, marinate overnight in buttermilk before breading.
* Use milk instead of water in bread dough for a sweeter, more tender crumb.
* To thicken sauces without lumps, knead together equal amounts of butter and flour and stir into hot sauce.
* Add a spoonful of heavy cream to scrambled eggs just before they are done to make them extra-rich and creamy.

To start discovering the unexpected with creme fraiche, try this easy recipe:

Baked Pears with Creme Fraiche

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:
3 medium pears, peeled, halved and cored
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon apple pie spice*
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup creme fraiche
2 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted (optional)

Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 350 F. Place pear halves, cut side down, on cutting board. Starting about 1/2-inch from stem end, make 7 lengthwise cuts in each half, cutting to the bottom but leaving pears slices attached at the stem end. Arrange pear halves, cut side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish.

2. In small saucepan, combine sugar, water, apple pie spice and vanilla. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Pour sugar mixture over pears.

3. Bake, covered, 40-45 minutes or until pears are tender, basting occasionally with sauce.

4. Spread two tablespoons crème fraiche onto one side of each of 6 dessert plates; spoon one tablespoon sauce from pears on the other side. With slotted spoon, place pear half in center of each plate; garnish with almonds, if desired. Serve immediately.

*To make apple spice, combine 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice and 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom.

Courtesy of ARAcontent