Need some help from all the bakers out there

stacey

We have these small pears growing on a tree in our yard. It's a shame that most of them are falling off and wasting. They seem to be Bosc pears. They are rather small and not as sweet and juicy as the other variety of pears

Does anyone have any ideas on what I can do with them or a recipe for a pear-type pie?

meredithb

put them in a salad with some raspberry dressing.

nomad

Yep - I thought a gorgonzola salad... yum!

meredithb

oh and pecans, add pecans too!

nomad

MeredithB wrote: oh and pecans, add pecans too!

Oooooo Yes!

... or walnuts.

Delish!

brokechick

when you say they aren't sweet, do you mean that they're tart, or are they just bland?

stacey

brokechick - they are bland.
I thought about the salad idea but like I said they are too bland.

brokechick

if the pears don't have much flavor, you will want to mix them with something that does and add spices that the pears can soak up, and they can just lend some texture. a little tartness will help, too. i am obsessed with blackberries right now, so they were the first thing i thought of. this recipe looks good and pretty simple:

http://dandysugar.com/?p=684

i would maybe add a little bit of cognac, just because, and definitely a sprinkle of good cinnamon.

domino

If you have Chambord, soak them in that.

I also make the gorganzola salad with a raspberry vinaigrette which I make myself. Take a few teaspoons of raspberry preserves, garlic infused olive oil, Chambord and balsamic vinegar and shake well. If the consistency is a bit too thick - a touch more balsamic or Chambord. Too watery, a touch more preserves. The tartness of the pears will be glazed over.

toadette

If you wanted to do the baking - here are a few pear recipes from one of my favorite food blogs http://smittenkitchen.com/category/fruit/pear/ That chocolate and pear cake recipe from Al Di La looks amazing...

pitu

Toadette wrote: If you wanted to do the baking - here are a few pear recipes from one of my favorite food blogs http://smittenkitchen.com/category/fruit/pear/ That chocolate and pear cake recipe from Al Di La looks amazing...

omigodomigodomigod, that cake as served at Al Di La is fantastic.
thx for linking...smittenkitchen is fab, I gotta look there more!

wish I had pear thoughts for you, stace, but looks like there's plenty of good advice here

voodoonyc

I looooooooove poached pears and it might be the perfect option for a bland pear. Google brings up a million recipes and it's really easy to do.

http://wine.about.com/od/howwineismade/r/poachedpears.htm

stacey

Now I cannot wait to get all these ingredients and try ALL of them!
Thank you so much guys - I will let you know how they come out
And of course anyone is welcome to some