Basic Pear Butter Recipes

PEAR BUTTER

Steps:

• Place pears into a large pot over medium heat, and add just enough water to cover the bottom of the pot and keep them from sticking, about 1/2 cup. Cook until the pears are soft, about 30 minutes. Press pears through a sieve or food mill, and measure out 2 quarts of the pulp.
• Pour the pear pulp and sugar into a large saucepan and stir to dissolve sugar. Stir in the orange zest, nutmeg and orange juice. Cook over medium heat until the mixture is thick enough to mound in a spoon. When the mixture begins to thicken, stir frequently to prevent scorching on the bottom. This will take about 1 hour.
• Ladle the pear butter into hot sterile jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove air bubbles by sliding a metal spatula around where the pear butter touches the glass. Wipe jar rims clean, and seal with lids and rings. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath. The water should cover the jars by 1 inch. Check with your local extension for exact processing times for your area.

EASY, LOW-SUGAR PEAR BUTTER

Steps:

• Place the pears into a large pot, and fill with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until fruit is soft, about 30 minutes. Drain and transfer the pears to a blender. Puree the pears and return them to the pot.
• Stir the sugar, sweetener, orange zest, nutmeg and orange juice into the pot and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatin until completely dissolved. Ladle into hot sterile jars and seal with lids and rings, or fill freezer containers and freeze if you prefer.

SLOW-COOKER PEAR BUTTER

Steps:

• Place spices on a double thickness of cheesecloth. Gather corners of cloth to enclose spices; tie securely with string. In a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker, toss remaining ingredients. Add spice bag, covering with pears., Cook, covered, on low 5-6 hours or until pears are tender. Remove spice bag., Puree pear mixture using an immersion blender. Or, cool slightly and puree mixture in a blender in batches; return to slow cooker., Cook, uncovered, on high 1-2 hours or until mixture is thickened to desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Store cooled pear butter in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Freeze option: Freeze cooled pear butter in freezer containers up to 3 months. Liquids expand as they freeze, so leave extra room at the top of the freezer container. To use, thaw in refrigerator.