Eat Fresh - Pears

Published November 1, 2006 in The Spectrum & Daily News

By Kathryn van Roosendaal

When I was a kid I absolutely loved pears. Canned, fresh, hard or squishy -- I didn't care. I would munch them down plain, top them with cottage cheese and plop them on top of oatmeal; the more the merrier.

Then I didn't like them so much. Maybe I overdid it, maybe I lost my taste for the sweet Bartlett pears – the only kind I'd every really had – and I suddenly found the canned ones way too sweet. For years it seemed the only pears I got were mealy or overripe, and eventually I stopped buying them altogether.

Then a friend of mine introduced me to the Anjou pear, and I fell in love all over again.

There aren't as many kinds of pears as there are apples, but there are still plenty to choose from. Some are sweet and soft, others are tart and crunchy and still others are sweet-tart and juicy. If you don't like the Bartletts, try a Bosc. If you don't like Anjou, try a Comice. Chances are you will like one of them.

Chances are the pears you buy at the store are not ripe enough for eating, mainly because ripened pears are too delicate to ship. To test a pear for ripeness, press in a little at the stem. If it gives, the pear is ready to eat and if your finger goes right through the flesh, it is overripe. If it doesn't give at all, put the pear in a paper sack for a day or so and then retest.

My favorite way to eat pears, especially the Anjous, is fresh with cheese, usually a sharp cheddar or gouda. But the true flavor of this fruit comes out in the baking.

Baked Pears

I love these simple, yummy pears for breakfast or a late-night snack.

4 pears, cut in halves and skinned

4 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place fresh pear halves or canned halves in baking dish or pie pan. Brush halves generously with butter. Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon mixture atop halves. Bake 8 to 10 minutes.

Barbecue spare ribs with pears

These ribs are bound to become a sweet family favorite.

2 1/2 cans bartlett pear halves, drained

1 cup chili sauce

3 tablespoons vinegar

1/2 teaspoon onion flakes or chopped onions

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

3 pounds spareribs

Drain juice from pears. Combine juice, chili sauce, vinegar, onion, salt and pepper. Heat to boiling and pour in pears. Let sit for several hours. Drain sauce from pears. Place spareribs in shallow pan. Pour half of sauce over ribs and bake at 350 degrees for 2 hours. Baste with remaining sauce. About 15 minutes before ribs are removed, lay pears over the top and heat.