Poached Pear Filling and Dipping Sauce

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine wine, apple cider, sugar, orange zest, and cinnamon. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, making sure sugar has completely dissolved before proceeding.

Peel, core, and dice pears, and immediately toss them with lemon juice to prevent browning. Add half of the pears to the saucepan and allow them to poach for 10 minutes. Add remaining pears to the mixture. This will ensure that there’s a good mixture of softer and firmer pieces of pear once baked. Let mixture cook for 5 minutes longer, remove from heat, and drain the spiced wine from the pears, reserving both.

Return the spiced wine to the pot over medium heat. Simmer until syrupy and reduced by one-half or three-quarters (depending on how thick you want your dipping sauce to be), about 30 to 45 minutes. Cool and chill until ready to serve.

Meanwhile, cool pears completely and chill for at least 30 minutes. Water will likely continue to condense and escape from the fruit, so be sure to drain the excess liquid again. Toss with cornstarch before using.

Fill the pops with the pears and use the sauce for dipping the baked pops.