Note: OMG. What a crazy day. Little girl didn’t take a nap today and now I know what they mean by the witching hour. There is no way I’m going to give up her naps anytime soon, if I can help it. I don’t know how you moms with more than one young child manage nap times, but I’m so thankful I only have a few more days to go juggling two! Anyway, today, I wanted to take a break from all that holiday baking and sugar. (Oh sugar, I hate and love you. One day soon, I shall have to say good-bye forever.) So for anyone else who loves pear butter like I do, here’s an easy peasy recipe for you!
I love easy. Easy = Ease = PLEASurE. (Although not necessarily always.)
So today I bring you an easy (if not the easiest!) way to make your very own homemade pear butter. Minus the sugar (yes!) and minus the…canning! This can make lovely gifts for those avoiding sugar, or at least trying to.
A word about Fermenting
If you are like me and have put off learning how to can because the whole process just seems so…hard, then I have some really good news for you! FERMENTATION to the rescue! Preserving foods the old school way was how our ancestors made the best of the harvest or the kill without refrigeration or heat. Through fermentation, not only can you preserve the good stuff that is often destroyed by high heat or processing that is often done to mass produced products like ketchup and the likes (which traditionally was made through fermentation), you also add the benefit of live cultures that are good for our gut health.
Plus did I mention how easy it was? Now for the recipe:
Easy Peasy Homemade Pear Butter (Sugar-Free!)
(From Nourishing Traditions, see resources below)
Ingredients:
4 cups unsulphured dried pear
1 Tablespoon of sea salt
1/4 cup of whey, or more salt (I used about 2 teaspoons)
1/4-1/2 cup raw honey
Directions:
Cook pears in filtered water until soft. Let it cool slightly and transfer with a slotted spoon to food processor or blender. Process with remaining ingredients. Taste for sweetness and add more honey if necessary. Place in a quart sized wide mouth mason jar. Make sure pear butter is at least 1 inch below the tops of the jars. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature on your kitchen shelf for about 2 days before transferring to the refrigerator.
Enjoy!
Recommended Books for Reading
Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats
Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods
Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation
OK, I’m glad you posted this because I’ve been wanting to ask someone for a long time: doesn’t the salt make it super-nasty?? I tried one of the fermented beverage recipes from Nourishing Traditions, but it was SO GROSS because of the salt. A tablespoon of salt seems like a lot for only 4 cups of pears. But maybe I did something wrong with my recipe? Is the salt flavour really strong in this one??
Kathleen Quiring | Project M´s last [type] ..Motherhood and Sexuality. Or, How Motherhood Has Changed Everything
[Reply]
Vina Barham Reply:
December 10th, 2011 at 8:41 am
@Kathleen Quiring | Project M, So I’m not an expert in fermenting but I have had a few successful tries and I think you can adjust the recipe as you wish. Some people are ok with the saltiness some aren’t. You can use less salt if you wish and play around with it. I’ve had success with Beet Kvass (and Ginger Ale) that I LOVED and then my next batch of Beet Kvass was just nasty! So it’s more of an art than science, I guess. But I would say keep trying and adjusting the salt for you. But don’t omit it.
Now that I think about it, I don’t really measure exactly so it’s possible that I put less salt when the stuff turns out yummy. Maybe. I don’t know. But also, maybe because of the natural sugar in pears plus the added honey outweighs and salty stuff. I’ve also made fermented apple sauce that turned out SO yummy so I’m thinking fermenting veggies and fruits are a little bit different because of natural sugar content.
But really, who knows?
Good luck and I would say, keep trying and tweaking and then stick to the recipes that do work for you! Make small batches first if you can.
[Reply]
Vina Barham Reply:
December 10th, 2011 at 8:42 am
@Kathleen Quiring | Project M, OH yes, don’t omit the salt. Here’s a good explanation from Wild Fermentation (which is different from fermenting with whey but still. I think it applies.)
“How much salt do you use? Traditionally vegetables have been fermented with lots of salt. In addition to pulling water from the vegetables, salt hardens pectins in the vegetables, rendering them crunchier, and discourages the growth of bacteria other than lactobacilli. By inhibiting competing bacteria, salt enables the vegetables to ferment and to be stored for longer periods of time. Since preservation has historically been one of the important motivations for fermentation, ferments have tended to be quite salty. But for health-conscious people interested primarily in flavor and nutrition, less salt can be better. Salt lightly, to taste. It is easier to add salt than to take it away, but if you oversalt, you can dilute by adding water and/or more vegetables. There is no magic proportion of salt the process requires—it’s just personal preference. As a starting point, try 3 tablespoons of salt per 5 pound of vegetables. More salt will slow the fermentation process; less (or none) will speed it up. Ferments with less salt may be more prone to surface molds. You can leave out the salt or use various mineral-rich substitutes such as celery juice (my favorite salt-free variation) or seaweed. Just be sure the vegetables are submerged in the liquid.
Some people promote the idea that salt-free sauerkrauts contain more beneficial organisms than salted krauts. I don’t believe that. The most specific beneficial bacteria we’re after, Lactobacillus, is salt-tolerant and abundantly present even in salty krauts; arguably, salt-free ferments are more biodiverse, but this diversity often results in mushy textures. Though it is possible to ferment vegetables without salt, a little salt results in far superior flavor and texture—and just as much beneficial bacteria. So again, salt to taste.”
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This pear butter (and an apple butter twin) is so good that I literally eat it straight from the jar. Absolutely delicious!
Jennifer´s last [type] ..Better Jobs
[Reply]
Vina Barham Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 1:41 am
@Jennifer, Nothing better than eating it straight from the jar!
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This looks so delicious and the instructions are straightforward. The best part sugar free.
I will get give it a try this weekend – thank you for the recipe.
Sebastian Henning´s last [type] ..Goldsilverfactor
[Reply]
Vina Barham Reply:
March 14th, 2012 at 8:43 pm
@Sebastian Henning, Let me know how it turned out!
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