Use the 1Tb butter to grease a medium sized, wide baking pan. Lay challah slices, slightly overlapping if need to.

In a separate bowl, mix the rest of the french toast ingredients. Everything from the heavy cream through salt. Whisk everything together very well and slowly pour over the challah bread evenly. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight if you have the time.

Take the french toast out of the refrigerator and remove plastic wrap. Recover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the topping gets crusty. When done, allow to rest.

While french toast is resting, make the sauteed pears. In a non-stick skillet, melt the butter and brown sugar together. Add pears and allow to cook until they begin to get soft, about 5 minutes, stirring continuously. Squeeze in orange juice and continue to stir. Turn off heat and add pomegranate seeds the last minute. Pour sauteed fruit over baked french toast.