Winter Fruit Salad

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 star anise
• 1/2 of plump vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
• 8 dried Turkish apricots, cut in half
• 4 dried figs, quartered
• 4 2" pieces lemon zest (peeled with vegetable peeler) from a Meyer lemon if you can find one
• Juice of the zest lemon
• 3 firm Bosc pears
• 1 firm tart apple
• Seeds from half a pomegranate

Fill a medium saucepan with 4 cups water. Add the sugar, star anise, vanilla bean and lemon zest. Bring to a boil, and cook until all the sugar is dissolved. Let it cool for just a few minutes (it should still be hot) and then stir in the dried figs and apricots. Let it cool completely.

Meanwhile, peel and core pears and apple. Slice thinly lengthwise and place in a large bowl, and toss with the lemon juice.

Once the syrup with dried fruit has cooled, pour it over the apples and pears. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill it overnight in the refrigerator.

The next morning, using a slotted spoon, ladle the fruit into a serving bowl, sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds and serve. Remove the vanilla beans (you can rinse and save what is left of them for another use) and lemon peels if you wish, or leave them in for decoration.

Do ahead Syrup can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for a day or two. Hot syrup can be poured over the dried fruit and kept in the fridge for a day or so. Prepared salad keeps in the fridge for a day or two, but is best fresh.

VERDICT:  I suspect it was the kind of apricot and lemon I used, but I didn't really care for them.  Apart from that, a lovely winter salad--the flavor was deemed "intriguing," but in a good way.  Keep.