Cut pears in half and core them. Pour white wine bottle into a pot along with the sugar, vanilla bean and cinnamon stick and bring to a boil. Add the cut pears to the pot and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender on a medium-low heat. Remove the pears to a serving dish standing them upright and place in refrigerator. Remove the vanilla bean from pot and continue reducing the wine-based sauce until 1 cup of syrup is left. Place the syrup in a heatproof container and place in the refrigerator until cool, approximately 1 hour.

Mix mascarpone cheese with two tablespoons of pear reduction syrup and spoon into pears. Sprinkle pears with pumpkin seeds that have been toasted on high heat in a small pan with the 1/2 tsp of olive oil, brown sugar and cayenne pepper. Lastly, drip on some of the pear reduction syrup.

This sweet white wine poached pear recipe is a perfect dessert or brunch dish for any day of the week. The recipe maximizes the pear's natural sweetness, combining it with a fruit-forward white wine that is highlighted with a touch of cinnamon, vanilla, mascarpone cheese and toasted pumpkin seeds.