Wednesday, May 22, 2013

My frustration with the pears that refused to ripen.

About four or so weeks ago I bought a bag of pears …they were rock hard but that is better than them being already ripe and ending up mushy and binned before they are consumed. After a few days I checked them …still hard as hard could be. I continued to check them every day but the only change was that their skin colour was mellowing.. After about two weeks of daily checking , I actually forgot about them as I just kept topping up the apples which now sat on top of them. I only remembered them when I had nearly run out of the apples, and saw them lurking at the bottom of the bowl. I carefully picked one up, expecting it to be quite mushy by now …but it was as hard as hard could be ….still.
I grabbed a knife and quartered it …hoping it was edible …maybe it was  meant to never be a juicy, succulent  fruit …maybe it was more like an apple …but even they go soft…eventually. Well … if I were desperate I might have eaten it …maybe … but I was  determined not to waste the remaining six.


I peeled quartered and cored them … with difficulty …and cooked them slowly in water which I had added a little lemon juice and sugar to …when soft enough to allow a knife point to pass through ..just …I turned them off and left them to cool.
On my return I tasted them …to my amazement they were delicious and soft ….like a very good quality tinned or bottled fruit ….last night we had them with chocolate custard and they were yummy….who would have thought.


Now I have two questions ….is this a brand of pear that is known to others out there…just not me ….or are these a batch of pears that found their way on to a supermarket shelf rather than continuing their journey to a cannery….I suppose I will  never know. 
-

Take Care xx

9 comments:

Rian said...

Angie, back at home (Louisiana) my mom would use what she called "cooking pears". And she cooked them pretty much the way you did. So possibly that was what you bought?

Annie said...

Cooking them in sugar and with Chocolate sauce?....I hope you didn't have any :-)
Hugs,
A x

Carmen said...

You've got me wondering now. I bought a bag of reduced price pears yesterday from the Spar garage. Hoping the girls could have them in their lunchbox. Rock hard yesterday and still rock hard again today - nowhere near rip so was flummoxed as to why they would be reduced. I wonder if they are the same variety (it says dessert pears on the bag?) I don't eat pears so I really don't know how they are supposed to feel but Craig says they are still way to hard. Hmmm.

Annie said...

Hi Angie....if you would like to email me your details to wipso@toucansurf.com I will happily send you an ATC and am more than happy to wait for you to send me one when you are able if you would like to.
Hugs,
A x

Arkansas Patti said...

I Googled it and got this.
"Asian pears are super crunchy - more like crisp apples than other pears---they work wonderfully in tarts and crisps"
Maybe that is what you had. Regardless, you managed to whip them into decent eating form. Well done.

Anonymous said...

Pears and chocolate are a fantastic combination. I once had a wonderful chocolate sponge with pureed pear sauce, gorgeous. Glad you got to use them up, I don't like waste either.

Hugs
Brenda

Annie said...

I will be sending out my ATCs later today so please email me your address so you don't get missed out :-)
I am rather old and forgetful you know :-)
Hugs,
A x

JoZart Designs said...

You brought back memories...During post WW2 rationing, with sugar scarce, my Mum used to poach foraged hard pears in lemonade and I still do it to this day but I have to buy the pears!
Jo x

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