George Shirley wrote:
> ellen wickberg wrote:
>
>> George Shirley wrote:
>>
>>> zxcvbob wrote:
>>>
>>>> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> I have several old jam/preserve recipes from my grandmother which
>>>>> call for pears to be peeled, cored, then either ground (jam) or
>>>>> sliced (preserve). My recollection of her jam/preserve was that
>>>>> the pears retained a noticable texture. When I buy pears for
>>>>> eating ripe, it seems the texture would be far too soft for
>>>>> grinding or slicing and retaining a texture after cooking.
>>>>>
>>>>> Are these recipes expecting a different kind of pear or pears that
>>>>> are not ripe?
>>>>>
>>>>> TIA
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Kieffer" pears. They are large, irregular shaped, and hard and
>>>> gritty. They are not much good for fresh eating* but they are
>>>> fire blight resistant, self-pollinating, and good for cooking.
>>>> There's another variety called "Pineapple" that should work, also
>>>> unripe Asian pears.
>>>>
>>>> *You can eat them fresh if you wrap them individually in newspaper
>>>> and store them for a few weeks for them to fully ripen and soften a
>>>> bit. Pears (like bananas) do not ripen well on the tree.
>>>>
>>>> Best regards,
>>>> Bob
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Bob is right, Kieffer are the best pear for making jams, etc. My
>>> father had two trees, my FIL had one, and I now have one,
>>> self-pollinating Kieffer in my backyard. I eat them raw but you have
>>> to wait for them to ripen on the countertop, or as above, wrapped in
>>> newspaper. For preserves, canned pear slices (make excellent pies and
>>> tarts), conserve, jams, pear honey, pear butter, etc they can't be
>>> beat. I've tried other varieties but they never turned out "right." I
>>> also use them for making wine and once distilled some of the wine
>>> into a pear brandy, long ago and in another country.
>>>
>>> Strange thing is, I've never seen them for sale in markets but often
>>> you can get some good soul to let you pick up a bucket or two as the
>>> Kieffer is very prolific.
>>>
>>> George
>>>
>> seckle pears are another winter variety that are good for jams and
>> pickles.
>> Ellen
>
>
> Kieffers, around here, usually ripen from July to August, sometimes as
> late as September, depending upon weather. I've never eaten a Sekle
> Ellen, what do they look like?
>
> George
>
quite small, brownish-greenish fairly thick skin, inside whitish like
most pears, fairly grainy, not really smooth or very juicy.
Ellen