The seckel pears are here! The seckel pears are here!

I picked up some seckel pears at the farmer's makret last Saturday and have made them two ways so far; roasted and poached. They're a nice alternative side dish to have with roast chicken or fish or as a dessert, warmed over vanilla ice cream with a little caramel sauce. Both recipes are incredibly easy to make and you can use any type of pear. I just think the little seckel pears are too darn cute.

Honey Roasted Pears
Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Ingredients
Enough pears to fill a medium sized baking pan
1/3 c. honey
1/2 c. maple syrup
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 Tbs. water
Pinch of powdered ginger
Pinch of cinnamon

Method
1) Rinse pears and slice a little bit off the bottom so they will stand up straight in the baking pan.
2) Put them into a baking pan or casserole dish so that they're packed tightly together.
3) Mix the remaining ingredients together and pour over pears.
4) Pop into the oven and roast, uncovered till they're tender when pierced with a fork, approximately an hour and change. It all depends on how ripe the pears are. Baste them about every 20 minutes while they're roasting to give them a nice golden hue.

Spiced Poached Pears

Ingredients
2 doz. Seckel pears
3 sticks of cinnamon
2 whole star anise
4 cloves
6 cups of water or to cover & half that amount of sugar

Method
1) Peel the pears leaving the stems intact
2) Place in a saucepan and cover with water. Make sure you measure the water so you know how much sugar to put in.
3) Add the spices, cover and bring to a boil.
4) Reduce the heat and simmer till they're tender when pierced with a fork.
5) Allow them to cool in the syrup and then place the pears and their syrup in an airtight container and refrigerate.

You could also place the pears and they're syrup in sterilized canning jars and process in boiling water so you'll have them later in the season.

Comments

[cat]

Unfortunately I don't know much about growing seckel pears ... just what to do with them once the farmers have 'em for sale. maybe this link will have some useful information: http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/plant_pear.pdf

[John Heitzman]

When I was young, my Dad had a seckel pear tree. We used to eat them right off the tree. So Sweet! In my new yard I found a healthy seckel pear tree, but the pears never seem to get ripe. Is there a season I should know about?

[Cat]

I've never had (or seen in the "wild") unripe seckle pears myself. The ones I use from the farmer's market look like the photos above. I would take some to your local garden center and see if they can identify them. The pears I use taste just like a regular pear ... not astringent at all.
Cheers-
Cat

[Cornelia Schupp-Fitzpatrick]

Hi,
We are in Southern Ontario, Canada. We have a huge tree that drops what looks and smells like pears. They are small and green and then turn Yellow. When you try to eat them they are so astringent and mealy. Is that what a raw seckel pear tastes like. I made some pear jelly out of them a few years ago and it turned out very nice. If you wait for them to ripen the core will turn brown and mushy. Any ideas???

[Marisa Parsons]

I was given a box of seckel pears. I had to use them, so I made a pear pie, a pear crisp, and made 7 pints of pear butter, and substituted the very thinly sliced pears for apples in a cake recipe I had. It turned out great! I love these little things. People around here try to wait until they're soft and eat them like a soft pear, but they don't realize how good they are cooked in something.

[Karen]

What fun to Google in seckel pears and find someone else not only has discovered them and likes them - but recipes as well! Thanks. Karen. PS I am thinking to layer thin slices on a tube cake before baking. Hmmm.

[Raymmmondo]

I lllove this site!

( :-D)