VANILLA BROWN SUGAR RECIPES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.
• Add the flour mixture in 2 batches, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Beat until the dough just comes together, being careful not to over mix.
• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Place the ball of dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper and roll out to 1/4-inch thick. Keeping the dough in the parchment, transfer to a cookie sheet and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cut out the cookies in the desired shapes and place on a half-sheet pan lined with parchment paper or an un-greased nonstick cookie sheet, at least 1-inch apart. Transfer to the freezer and chill for at least 15 minutes or until they are firm.
• Bake until the cookies are light golden brown, about 10 minutes.
• Let cookies cool completely on the sheets before decorating.

Steps:

• Place the white wine, water, sugar and vanilla bean and pulp into a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
• Core the pears from the bottom. Decrease the heat to medium low and place the pears into the liquid, cover and cook for 30 minutes or until the pears are tender but not falling apart. Maintain a gentle simmer. Remove the pears to a serving dish, standing them upright, and place in the refrigerator.
• Remove the vanilla bean from the saucepan, increase the heat to high and reduce the syrup to approximately 1 cup of liquid, approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Do not allow the syrup to turn brown. Place the syrup in a heatproof container and place in the refrigerator until cool, approximately 1 hour.
• Remove the pears from the refrigerator, spoon the sauce over the pears and serve.