by germinatrix | October 9th, 2009
perfect pears
the group gathered for brunch couldn't resist
every branch bends with the weight of the beautiful fruit
the grass is littered with potential -pies, jam, fruit bars...
... this one wants to be roasted in a brown sugar syrup, don't you think?
I think Alex is formulating a plan for capturing more juicy green orbs
success! a treasure hauled home in a trader joe's bag
Poached Pears in Cardamom Sauce
1 bottle red wine (pref. syrah, but your choice!)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 – 1/2 cup water
1 cup orange juice
zest of 1 orange
1- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 vanilla bean, split
2 sticks cinnamon
6 pears, peeled, cored, but leave the stems!
stir all ingredients in a heavy-bottomed pot (make sure it has room for the pears!) and bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmering, add the pears and cover. Poach until cooked through, but not falling apart; about 20 mins … more or less. Remove the pears and continue to reduce the liquid until syrupy. Remove vanilla bean.
Serve these incredibly yummy (and super easy!) pears with vanilla ice cream and the syrup drizzled on top.
Imagine me setting at da ‘puter, and of a sudden, like, up pops Germi’s new post on pears!
Blimey, a delish recipe for the luscious fruit, too!!
Now where might I find such a trove in me neck o’ the woods?
(don’t ask about the dialect, or why… I’m supposed to be working on an article!!!!)
Zowie! Takes me back to childhood when my brothers and I used to bean each other with pears just like these. Side-garden warfare would be a fair description. Mama used to turn them into a kind of chunky pear butter or pearsauce with strips of lemon peel cooked tart and tender, but I never had them poached. Must give it a try. Looks like you guys had such fun gathering them. Thanks, Germi.
I must try poached pears. Pearsauce is delicious, too. We add pineapple to pearsauce, kind of like baby food pears & pineapple, served very cold.
Hi Ivette and mmm pears roasted in brown sugar, (insert Homer drool here)! What a harvest, that tree is full, full, full. I have a small satsuma tree that is full of fruit right now. Although the fruit is still mostly green, I ate one the other day (as you do) and to my suprise it was sweet! Citrus is too weird.
Looks like pears were a plenty at your brunch.
ESP.
Tendril, when you LEAST expect me – EXPECT ME! And I like the dialect … Jan loves to bust into strange accents at inappropriate moments – which always makes me laugh!
The poached pears are DELISH!!! you must find a stash at a local farmer’s market and have a go – you’ll luv it!
XO!
Hi Expat! OUCH! Pears straight form the tree would HURT! But what else are you supposed to do with brothers? GARDEN WARFARE is right! Oh, and that pear butter/sauce sounds FAB! I love anything made from pears – pear jam is a favorite, especially when there is lots of lemon zest used. MMMM good! Always a treat to hear from you!
NellJean, you will be really happy with this pear recipe – it is sooo easy and twice as good! I’ve never thought of adding PINEAPPLE to a pear sauce! What total unadulterated yumminess! That sounds divine – I am going to start experimenting with these great flavors together … thanks for the hint!
My pal ESP!!! Isn’t it funny that we posted pics of fruit trees bursting forth with bounty at the same time? Great minds, as they say! Now wait a minute – how are there green satsumas on your tree when you have an active Nabooboo tribe in the Patch? We have learned that they favor the green fruit of the smaller citrus varieties as a weapon and a training tool for hand/eye coordination. Could it be that the tribe has seen how much you covet the fruit for eating, and is keeping their hands off in respect to their neighbor? If so, what a marvelous development. I think it may be time to submit a paper to the proper anthropological journal! XO!
GIRL! I saw this yesterday and immediately ran out to get some pears! I cut the recipe in half and added some ginger – it was the PERFECT rainy fall dessert for last night – Kyle and I LOVED it! (and have leftovers for tonight mmmmmmmm!)
Miss you lovely, hope to see you around the holidays!
xoxoxoxo
Oh, man! Can’t wait to try this recipe. I will have to sort through the bounty from two trees to find a few perfect specimens to do it justice.