MAKE THE BOUNTY LAST
PEARS
BY XANTHE CLAY
I love pears when they’re soft, sweet, and chindribblingly juicy. But like buses and boyfriends, they do all come at once. Save some for later by preserving or freezing them. (If only it was this easy with boyfriends.)
FREEZE Pears need to be cooked before freezing or they’ll oxidise to a muddy brown. Choose firm pears, then peel, halve and core them (a melon baller is ideal for this). Poach in a light sugar syrup (200g sugar dissolved in 1 litre boiling water) with a split vanilla pod added to the liquid. Freeze on trays first, then pack into bags and store in the freezer for up to a year. PRESERVE Pickled pears are the perfect accompaniment to ham, and pretty darned good with cold turkey too, so now is the time to bottle them up in time for Christmas feasting.
Peel 2kg hard pears, halve them (or quarter large pears) and scoop out the cores. Tiny pears, which are best of all, can be left whole. Put in a pan with 2 fresh rosemary sprigs, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 tsp cloves, 1 tbsp mixed lightly crushed peppercorns, 1 litre cider vinegar and 700g sugar. Heat gently until the sugar dissolves, then bring to a simmer and cook until the pears are just tender. Spoon the pears into sterilised jars, pour over the hot syrup and spices, ensuring the pears are completely submerged, then seal and store for up to 6 months.
VIDEO To see how to sterilise jars go to deliciousmagazine.co.uk/videos/how-to-sterilise-jars.
COOK’S TIP
To grate soft or crumbly cheese more easily, put it in the freezer for 20 minutes to harden up beforehand.
HOW TOÉ SAVE SEIZED (SPLIT) CHOCOLATE