LITTLE ROCK — Pears are one of the signature fruits of autumn, and a nice change of pace from summer’s delicate fruits and berries.
Though there are thousands of varieties, Bartletts are the best known. They’re recognized by their shapely bottoms and long necks. They arrive rock-hard at the grocery store. Most pears ripen off the tree, and Bartletts are no exception. They’re picked in August and September when mature but still firm and available through December or January, according to the USA Pears website, usapears.com. Given time, Bartletts turn from green to yellow and their flesh from crunchy and tart to creamy and super sweet and juicy — perfect for eating out of hand. If the neck near the stem yields when pressed, it means the pear is on its way to ripening.
Firm, ripe pears are what’s needed for these recipes. Softer pears will turn mealy as they cook. Pears can be used in place of apples in any recipe. The advantage of using pears is that they let other flavors shine. That means you can really taste the touch of cardamom and apricot jam in the pie.
Although you could certainly slice the pears for this recipe by hand, for even slices in a very little time, a mandoline works best.
You will also need a roll of parchment paper.
Pear Chips
3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 cup water 2 underripe pears
Heat oven to 225 degrees.
In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, water and cream of tartar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer while slicing the pears.
Slice the pears 1/16-inch thick using a mandoline. Immediately immerse the pear slices in the boiling sugar syrup. When the syrup has resumed a rapid boil, remove the slices with a slotted spoon to a plate. When cool enough to handle, place slices on a pan lined with parchment paper. Make sure slices don’t touch or overlap. Bake 40 to 50 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking. To test for doneness, once chips take on a dry appearance, remove one from the oven and allow to cool on the counter. If it’s crispy once it’s cooled, it’s ready. The chips will keep for two weeks, or longer if refrigerated. Makes 20 to 30 pear chips.
Recipe from The Sweet Life: Desserts From Chantrelle by Kate Zuckerman (Bullfinch Press, $35)
Peppery Pear Salsa
1 cup white vinegar 8 cups coarsely chopped cored, peeled pears (see note) 3 red bell peppers, seeded and coarsely chopped 3 green bell peppers, seeded and coarsely chopped 1 cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons salt 2 teaspoons dry mustard 1 teaspoon turmeric 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Prepare canner, jars and lids. In a large steel saucepan, combine vinegar and pears. Add red and green peppers, sugar, salt, mustard, turmeric, allspice and black pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Ladle hot salsa into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Wipe rim with a damp towel. Center lid on jar.
Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip-tight. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process jars for 20 minutes. Remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes to remove jars.
Cool and store the salsa.
Makes 6 (8-ounce) jars.
Note: To prevent the pears from browning, measure the vinegar into the saucepan, then add the pears to the vinegar as you peel and chop them, stirring the mixture to coat the pears with vinegar.
Recipe from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving by Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine (Robert Rose, $19.95)
This cake, from Camilla V. Saulsbury’s Piece of Cake! One-Bowl, No-Fuss, From-Scratch Cakes, is delicious with or without a crumb topping. Saulsbury suggests a crumb topping made with 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup packed light brown sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, and 1 cup chopped walnuts.
Using fingertips, blend ingredients until crumbly and sprinkle evenly on batter before baking.
Pear Cake
13/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup granulated sugar 21/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup unsalted butter 11/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 21/2 cups coarsely chopped
firm ripe pears Baking spray
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add eggs, sour cream, butter and vanilla to flour.
Using an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat for 1 minute or until blended. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl with a spatula. Beat on medium for 1 minute more. Gently stir in pears.
Spread batter evenly in 13-by-9-inch baking pan coated with nonstick baking spray with flour. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
Makes 16 servings.
Recipe from Piece of Cake! One-Bowl, No-Fuss, From-Scratch Cakes by Camilla V. Saulsbury
The pears will soften but remain firm when baked into a pie. For a juicier filling, use less tapioca.
Pear Pie
Unbaked pastry for 2-crust pie 1/4 cup apricot preserves 6 or 7 firm, ripe Bartlett pears,
cored and sliced 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1/3 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom 2 to 3 tablespoons quickcooking tapioca 3 tablespoons butter, cut into
small pieces
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Line pie plate with half the pastry.
Combine preserves, pears, sugars, nutmeg, cardamom and tapioca and mix well. Transfer mixture to prepared pie plate. Dot with butter and top with remaining crust. Cut several slits in top crust to vent pie. Bake 40 to 50 minutes, or crust is golden brown and filling is tender and bubbly.
Makes 1 pie.
Food, Pages 31 on 09/26/2012