The Fruits of Winter Volume One: Recipe ideas for Canned Pears

One of the best things about canning is that even in the dead of winter you can enjoy the fruits of your labor in the summer garden. There is nothing better than to pop open a jar of salsa, jam or pickled okra and enjoy the taste of fresh garden goodness on a cold bleak snowy day. 

Mama's pears and my okra with labels from my store

My mother in law recently shared an over abundance of canned pears she had with me and they look beautiful in the jars but I have never been a big fan of pears. So I have been looking for ways to use them and found some interesting recipes that I am going to try and also share with you.

The first recipe I want to try is a variation on Pineapple upside down cake

Pear Upside Down Cake

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter 
• 1 cup brown sugar packed
• 3 canned pear halves sliced thin
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup oil
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

 

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium saucepan, melt butter and brown sugar together over low heat, stirring occasionally until dissolved. 
• Pour caramel mixture into 9-inch round cake pan.
• Top with sliced pears, working from the inside to the outside, creating a spiraled pattern. 
• In a medium mixing bowl, mix together dry ingredients.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix together milk, oil, egg, and vanilla until just blended.
• Add dry mixture to wet mixture and stir until just incorporated.
• Pour cake batter into pan over caramel and pears.
• Place cake in middle rack in oven. 
• On a lower rack, place a large cookie sheet directly underneath the cake pan to catch any possible drips.
• Bake approximately 50-60 minutes, or until caramel has bubbled up around the sides, cake is golden brown and a toothpick comes out with dry crumbs adhering to it.
• Remove from oven and let cake stand for approximately 10 minutes on a wire rack. (10 minutes is important... don't go too long or it will stick in the pan, too short and it will fall apart.)
• Flip cake out onto a serving dish and serve warm or cold. 

 I have heard tell that people like this version of upside down cake better than the pineapple cake so here is hoping it becomes my new favorite too, because mama didn't can any pineapple.  😉



The next recipe I want to try is pear honey which sounds absolutely scrumptious. The recipes I looked at called for fresh pears but in the reviews the people who made it proved it to be flexible... one said she used frozen pears so I am going to try it with canned pears.

Also the original recipe called for 8 (EIGHT!?) cups of sugar.  Some people who made it said it was too sweet and they cut the sugar to 6 cups. I am also going to cut my recipe to 6 cups so I can taste the pears. Some others said they adapted the recipe to cook in a crock pot for 4-6 hours. I might cheat and do it that way too just for convenience sake. Another tip for this recipe was to pulse the pears with a blender first. I could picture me putting the whole thing in my crock pot and mixing it with my stick blender. Watch for an update to see how I fared.

Pear Honey

Ingredients 

•  8 cups chopped pears 
•  6 to 8 cups white sugar
•  1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice (you can substitute crushed pineapple instead)

 Instructions

• Place chopped pears into a large pot, and pour pineapple juice over them to prevent them from browning. 
• Stir in sugar, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. 
• Stir frequently to prevent scorching. 
• When the pears are at a full boil, reduce heat to medium, and cook until the mixture is the color and texture of honey. 
• The longer you cook it, the thicker it gets. 
• Cooking time is usually 2 to 3 hours.
•  Ladle into hot sterile jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of the top. 
• Wipe rims with a clean damp cloth, and seal jars with lids and rings. 
• Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes, or the amount of time recommended for your altitude

 These recipes have inspired me to get in the kitchen and try something new.  I hope you will try them too! 

Update:  1/9/20

Last night I made the Pear Upside down cake recipe myself.  It went off without a hitch and it is mmm mmm good! Mine wasn't as pretty as I'd hoped but I didn't make it to look at anyway.  The best endorsement I can give it is that my husband who hates pears reluctantly tried it and he liked it.  I served it up to him warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and he said yum and that he would even like to have some more. That is my gauge for success! 

 And don't forget to get your custom canning labels at my store where you can find all kinds of cool things made especially for the home canner!  The Jelly Jar!

Buy this label HERE