Poire Belle Hélène
Poire Belle Hélène is a fairly simple cold dessert. The pears are poached in a vanilla-flavoured syrup, then served on top of vanilla ice cream with hot chocolate sauce poured over.
80 K 4.7/5 (23 reviews)
20 min.
Easy
12 people
3 IngredientsLast modified on: November 22th 2023
For 12 people, you will need:
12 
5 cups 
5 cups 
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 20 min.
If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
To finish around 7pm, you'll need to have started before: .Change end time
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 5 min.
Drain 12 poacheds pears and slice them.
Stage 2 - 5 min.
Put 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream into each dish.
Stage 3 - 3 min.
Arrange a sliced pear on top.
Stage 4 - 3 min.
Pour the hot chocolate sauce over and serve immediately.
Remarks
You can scatter a few toasted flaked almonds over the chocolate if you like, but this is not essential.
Many recipes leave the pears whole with the stalk still on. This is certainly more attractive, but less enjoyable to eat. That is why the pears are sliced in this version.
The recipe was invented by Auguste Escoffier in the nineteenth century in honour of the eponymous musical work by Jacques Offenbach.
Many recipes leave the pears whole with the stalk still on. This is certainly more attractive, but less enjoyable to eat. That is why the pears are sliced in this version.
The recipe was invented by Auguste Escoffier in the nineteenth century in honour of the eponymous musical work by Jacques Offenbach.
Keeping: Should be eaten immediately.
Source: Based on a recipe by Auguste Escoffier.
Nutritional information
| Proteins (gr) | Carbohydrates (gr) | Fats (gr) | Energy value (in k-calories) | Energy value (in k-joules) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole recipe | 800 RDI=310 % | 4,210 RDI=400 % | 2,770 RDI=420 % | 23,980 RDI=1,200 % | 100,380 RDI: 1,200 % |
| Per 100 g | 30 RDI=10 % | 180 RDI=20 % | 120 RDI=20 % | 1,000 RDI=50 % | 4,180 RDI: 50 % |
| Per person | 70 RDI=30 % | 350 RDI=30 % | 230 RDI=40 % | 2,000 RDI=100 % | 8,370 RDI: 100 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 12 people : 13.30 €
- Per person : 1.15 €
Change currency: 
Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Vanilla ice cream
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Profiteroles, Ice-cream Vacherin, Peach Melba, Little caramelized peach tarts, Baked Alaska, ... See them all 5
Chocolate sauce
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Profiteroles, Like Bounty, ... See them all 2
Poached pears
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Tarte Bourdaloue, Pear and strawberry verrine with tiramisu cream, Rice pudding with chestnuts and poached pears, Pear verbena tarts, Fresh fruit in sabayon, ... See them all 5
Other recipes you may also like
Pitta bread
This Lebanese speciality is made as a flat round pocket, which can be filled with all manner of things.January 8th 2025525 K 14.5 2 hours 50 min.
Mimosa eggs
Mimosa eggs are hard boiled eggs where the yolks are removed, chopped and mixed with a herb mayonnaise, then this mix is used to refill the whites. It's a classic recipe of traditional French bistro cooking.February 21th 2011295 K 25 50 min.
How to prepare carrots
Here's how to prepare carrots, from the simplest way (peeled then rinsed) to a more sophisticated version where only the very best ofthe vegetable is kept.February 21th 2011174 K4.3 15 min.
Surprise eggs
These look like perfectly normal boiled eggs, but when the shell is cracked open - surprise! They contain a mixture of scrambled egg, cured ham, fried prawns and chives.September 26th 2010183 K5 55 min.
Ocean bread
The idea for this bread was inspired by an amusing coincidence: the proportion of salt needed for good bread is 35 g of salt per litre of water, which just happens to be the exact concentration of salt in the Atlantic Ocean. So it's possible to make bread using sea water to provide all the salt...October 24th 2017176 K 63.8 5 hours 7 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-05-11)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.