Pears

Pear perfection

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October pear harvest. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

The temperature has been dropping these past few days so I decided it was time to pick the pears before a frost spoils them. It’s been a good year for most of the orchard fruit in my garden, and although I only have 2 small pear trees of differing variety, both produced 7 or 8 fruit each. One tree is a Doyenne de Comice which grows against an old wall, espalier-style, and the other is a Concorde pear, more of an upright tree but still sheltered by a wall.

Most pears ripen off the tree but I find it a challenge knowing exactly when to pick them, some time between the wasps disappearing and the cold weather arriving. If you want to store your harvest, unlike apples, pears don’t require wrapping, just arrange them in a single layer, not touching, on a shelf or tray, in a cool, dry place. You will need to check them frequently, and once the fruit begins to soften at the stalk end, keep them at room temperature for 2 to 3 days to complete ripening.

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Comice pear tree growing against a wall. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Pear: Doyenne de Comice. Image: Kathryn Hawkins
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Small Concorde pear tree. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Pear: Concorde. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

5 recipe ideas for pears:

  • Peel and core firm but ripe pears, sprinkle with butter, cinnamon and brown sugar and bake along side a ham or pork joint for the last 30 minutes of cooking; baste occasionally to prevent them drying out.
  • Mash soft, ripe pear flesh into freshly prepared mashed potato along with salty, sharp blue cheese – delicious served with roast chicken or ham.
  • Blend chopped pear with fresh blueberries, unsweetened apple (or pear) juice and plain soy or coconut yogurt for a creamy smoothie.
  • For a decadent sandwich, toast gluten-free bread and fill with freshly sliced pear, a few marshmallows and chocolate chips. Spread butter or margarine on the outside of the toast and press the sandwich into a preheated hot griddle pan for a couple of minutes on each side – or pop in a sandwich toaster if you have one – to heat through and melt the chocolate.
  • Halve a perfectly ripe pear and scoop out the core. Brush with lemon juice and fill the centre with grated marzipan. Flash under a hot grill for a few seconds to melt the marzipan and serve immediately, scattered with toasted almonds and chocolate sauce – my favourite!

My harvest festival

~ My virtually free-from kitchen ~ 2 Comments
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Today’s harvest of homegrown apples, pears and raspberries. Image by Kathryn Hawkins

Today has been my first opportunity to get into the garden for a while. Work has got in the way, and the weather has been pretty grim, so I seized the opportunity this morning and spent a couple of hours getting some fresh air and taking stock.

I was delighted to pick a bowl of late ripening raspberries – a delicious breakfast treat for tomorrow morning. I had expected that the birds would have been tucking in during my absence, but they are obviously feeding elsewhere.

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Autumn Bliss – late fruiting raspberries. Image by Kathryn Hawkins

We have had an unusually mild September, and it’s really only been these past couple of weeks that the temperature has gone down a few degrees, but we have yet to have a frost. As a result, my runner beans flowered again, and tonight I will be enjoying freshly picked, homegrown beans with my supper – a first for me at this time of year.

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Second time around, October runner beans. Image by Kathryn Hawkins

Scotland has an ideal climate for growing potatoes, and the Pink Fir variety I planted this year have done very well. Not usually a high yielding potato, I have been pleasantly surprised by how many potatoes the plants have produced so far, and I have plenty more to dig. Their cream coloured flesh is flaky and dry, and the pink, knobbly skin adds nuttiness to the flavour; they boil and roast well.

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Trug of freshly dug pink fir potatoes. Image by Kathryn Hawkins

Last year, I didn’t get the chance to try any eating apples from the garden. One of my trees produced no fruit at all, and the apples from on other tree were enjoyed by the birds before I got a look in! I have victory over my feathered friends this year, although I did leave a few of the really wee ones on the tree for the colder weather, when the birds do finally get peckish. I am looking forward to trying the apples; they are quite small but look very enticing with their shiny scarlet blush.

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Cute little eating apples – variety unknown. Image by Kathryn Hawkins