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The Simple Pleasure of a Pear

23rd January 2013 By Urvashi Roe Leave a Comment

I wasn’t a huge fan of the pear when I was younger as they always put me in a mood.  At school I reached for the greenest but inevitably got the hard and bitter one that was neither sweet nor sour.  I’d sit nibbling on it to minimise the distaste filled with food envy of my friends who had chosen an apple or banana.

At home, my mother would only have the plumpest varieties – yellow with a hint of pink in some places. These would ooze juice with each bite and get me into all sorts of trouble about not eating like a princess.  They were almost sickly but I’d nibble until the strings of the core and pips remained.  That memory reminds me of the Edward Bunyan’s sentiment below which really summarises what pears should taste like.

“It is, in my view, the duty of an apple to be crisp and crunchable, but a pear should have such a texture as leads to silent consumption”. Edward Bunyan, The Anatomy of Dessert  

Nashi baked with Star Anise

This is not true of Japanese Nashi pears as they are crunchable but I find myself equally lost in consumption.  I love the fact they look like an apple but the bite, crunch and taste is that of a pear. I’d never use them any other way but raw.  Though this recipe for Baked Nashi with Star Anise by Martha Stewart is rather tempting.

They also compliment the saltiness of blue cheeses well and thus end up as a late supper with that glass of Rioja.

A simple energy boost

Aside from being one of life’s simple and silent pleasures, there are three really good reasons why you should pack and pear in your lunchbox and eat it raw.

  1. Firstly they have a lot of fibre – about 3% in a medium sized pear – which means they keep you full for a while.
  2. They also are laden with natural sugars and the glucose is absorbed by your body and released in the form of energy. Perfect for my 3pm slump.  
  3. They are a low acid fruit which means less chance of tummy upsets for all ages.

Ripe and ready for baking

At our local market there is always a great selection of pears.  Aside from the silent juicy types which I’m happy to pay a fair price for, I do often bat my eyelids a little and get a lower price on the ones going a little over as these not only placate my impatience and inability to let anything ripen at home but also allow me to bake with them straight away.   Bosc, Conference and Williams pears are the ones to go for in baking. They keep their shape pretty well for the tarts and pretty recipes and are sweet to carry their flavour through in cakes.  I used the Conference pears for my Pear and Ginger Crumble Slices.

Pear and Ginger Crumble Slice

The perfect grown up treat

How do you eat your pears? Raw or cooked? Have you tried any unusual varieties? 

 

Related

Filed Under: Sweet Tagged With: baking, Pear

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Emma says

    23rd January 2013 at 10:20 pm

    Nashi Pears are my absoloute favourite; reminds me of childhood summers days in New Zealand.

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      23rd January 2013 at 10:22 pm

      Where do you buy them in the UK?

      Reply
  2. kellie@foodtoglow says

    24th January 2013 at 2:37 am

    I too used to ambivalent about pears, always getting the one that tasted of nothing, or else the one that had ‘ gone over’ and tasted of nail polish remover. Happily it seems that storage and stocking of pears has improved & this happens much less often. I’m intrigued that you get a discount on ‘ cookers’ by batting your eyelids. I doubt I could get away with that, but it’s worth a shot 🙂 PS I like my pears as is. simple and silent

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      24th January 2013 at 7:33 am

      Yes! I forgot about that nail varnish remover like taste! What is that? Wonder why it happens. A little light flirting with market traders is part of the fun of going. Reminds me of living in Aix at university when I could scrounge a whole lunch with a few smiles and light banter 🙂

      Reply
  3. Sarah says

    24th January 2013 at 9:06 am

    I’ve never come across Nashi pears – will have to look out for them. After so many disappointments with shop-bought pears, I’d given up buying them and rely on our two pear trees for fruit.

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      24th January 2013 at 6:26 pm

      You’re lucky to have trees. I want a garden large enough for fruit trees.

      Reply
  4. andreamynard says

    24th January 2013 at 1:15 pm

    You’ve made me want to hunt for overripe pears now so I can try your yummy looking pear crumble slices. Lovely post.

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      24th January 2013 at 6:26 pm

      Thank you Andrea xx

      Reply
  5. Caroline Taylor says

    31st January 2013 at 9:34 am

    Urvashi these look wonderful! I love pears but they have to be ‘just right’ unlike your school pears!

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      1st February 2013 at 8:07 pm

      Thanks lovely x

      Reply

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Hi I'm Urvashi!

I love food. This blog is a little glimpse into my foodie world which is an escape from two teenage girls, a busy job and my little cafe.

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