Last weekend we picked a basket full of not-quite-ripe pears from the neighborhood trees that are loaded down with fruit. I have a compulsion to scoop up any free fruit that is offered to us, so we made it a family outing (see above!). Plus, I was itching to try out a recipe for canning pears that sounded both delicious and easy.
The recipe, Pears Packed in Honey Vanilla Syrup, is from Tart and Sweet, a cheerful and creative book filled with seasonal canning recipes. I like the recipe because you don’t have to cook the fruit (which saves time!) and the ingredient list is short and accessible. Plus, I can imagine many delicious ways to eat this fruit such as over vanilla ice cream, with oatmeal, or on top of plain yogurt.
I followed the recipe almost exactly—I left out the vanilla bean because I was using super flavorful local wildflower honey—and while the yield was slightly off and my hand is a little sore from peeling the fruit, I’m otherwise super happy with how these turned out.
Pears Packed in Honey Syrup
Adapted from Tart and Sweet
Prep: 60ish minutes
Cook: 15
6 pounds ripe pears, peeled, cored, and chopped roughly and packed into jars*
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 cups honey
2 1/2 cups water
1. Mix the pears with the lemon juice in a large bowl to keep them from browning.
2. Bring the honey and the water to a boil in a medium saucepan, stirring occasionally.
3. Pour boiling syrup over the pears, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. (NOTE: The recipe says to be sure to cover the pears completely, which I tried to do, but they tended to float up to the top a bit…hopefully they will be okay.)
4. Check for air bubbles, wipe the rims, and seal lids. Process for 15 minutes.
A few things:
Be sure to sterilize your jars and lids.
The original recipe says it makes 5 pint jars. We made 4 quarts so if you are using pint jars, sterilize 8 to be safe because you may have a load of fruit left.
Apparently you can can whole fruit, such as plums, in honey syrup. Good to know!