Dessert! My favorite meal of the day

  I have a sweet-tooth.  I love the melding of flavors and textures that occur in desserts.  At the end of a difficult day, I love curling up on the sofa with one of these desserts and a good book or movie.  I know you love it too, so I am sharing a few of my favorites with you. 

 Poached Figs with Bavarian custard
* adapted from Spice: Flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean
For the Bavarian:
bit of oil or a cooking spray
1 3/4 c Milk
1/2 c Sugar
1/4 c STM local Honey
1/2 STM Vanilla bean
6 egg yolks
ice cubes
1 tb + 1 tsp powdered unflavored Gelatin or powdered Agar-agar (a gelatin-like seaweed)
1 c Creme fraiche
1/4 c heavy cream
Figs:
4 c fruity Red wine such as STM Pinot Noir
1 c Sugar
1/2 c STM local Honey
1/2 STM Vanilla bean
3 STM Allspice berries
6 STM Tellicherry peppercorns
2 tb STM Orange Zest
15-20 fresh figs, stems removed
*variation: when figs aren't in season I use pears instead.  Increase the wine to 6 c, and the suagr to 1 1/2 c.  Core and halve 6 pears, removing that fibrous bit along the middle.
  Grease a loaf pan with the cooking spray.  Line with plastic wrap.  Gently scald the milk, stirring in the sugar and honey once it's hot.  Scrape the vanilla seeds into the milk when it's just under boiling.  Cover, remove from the heat and let infuse for 30 min.  Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks until creamy.  Slowly beat in the cooled milk and pour into the milk pan.  Cook over a med-low heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 min - until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Pour into a bowl set on ice and stir constantly for 3 minutes.  Bloom the gelatin in 1/4 c cold water 3-5 min.  Stir into the custard.  Chill for 15 min, stirring every 5.  Beat the creme fraiche and the cream to soft peaks.  In three stages, fold the whipped cream into the custard.  Spoon into the prepared loaf pan and chill 6 hours or overnight. 
Combine everything except the fruit.  Simmer the sauce for 10-12 minutes.  Add the fruit (if using pears, weight them down with a plate)  Continue simmering.  Figs-8 min, then remove the fruit to a dish while the sauce cooks for another 10-12 min.  Pears - simmer for 20-25 minutes, remove and reduce the sauce.  Both: toss the fruit with the syrup-sauce and chill for a few hours.  Serve overtop slices of the custard.
  This recipe is a little time intensive but it is so well worth the effort!