almond pears
Our neighbor messaged my youngest (age 11, and apparently the neighborhood’s littlest farmer) and asked if we would like pears. An abundant season left them with more this harvest than they could use (I’m hoping as a result of some very Busy Bee’s doing what they do best.) Of course, Theo zipped right over, as one does in this pear predicament, and grabbed a bag. Later that day, the neighbor’s wife messaged me and said she left a box of pears for me in the office (either not knowing about earlier said bag or perhaps as a way to distribute more pears. Either way, I’m not going to pass this moment up. Twenty pounds of pears and endless possibilities…and Almond Pears is just one of them!
Ingredients
7 pounds fresh pears
2 cups sugar
4 cups water
1/3 cup blanched almonds
1/2 cup almond liquor (Mrs. Poepping highly recommends using Disoronno Amaretto. You’ll be so thankful you splurged!)*
Directions
Wash pears; drain. Peel pears, cut into halves and core. To prevent darkening, I simply used a bit of Citric Acid in a water bath and it worked perfectly. But feel free to use any method that has worked well for you in the past. Rinse and drain. Cook pears in water one layer at a time until hot throughout; set aside, keeping hot. Combine sugar and 4 cups water in medium saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Pack hot pears into hot jars leaving ¼ inch headspace. (Please be sure to fully sanitize and prepare the jars to prevent bacteria, spoiling and/or failure to seal. This is very important and a step that I take very seriously as all canning tools are properly sanitized in boiling water before each canning session.) Add 1 tablespoon almonds to each jar. Remove syrup from heat; stir in almond liqueur. Ladle hot syrup over pears, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles (use a butter knife to gently move food in jar from one side to the other). Adjust two-piece caps. Process 20 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
*If you are lucky, there will be extra Amaretto simple syrup for you to incorporate into other recipes you create with your pears, add to a French 75 cocktail for a twist of flavor, or to drizzle over ice cream!
