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Every couple of years when the pears come in from my favorite local farm, I make a batch of this pear butter. It keeps well, it gifts beautifully, and it’s different enough from the berry jams of summer that people always seem genuinely pleased to find a jar of it. The flavor is warm without being heavy, sweetened with maple syrup and spiced with whole star anise, ginger, and vanilla bean. The whole spices steep through the slow cooking process and then come out before canning, so the flavor stays subtle rather than sharp.
Pear Variety
Use any pears that you have on hand. I used bosc pears in this last round giving it a lovely golden color from the skins but truly any type of pear will work wonderfully.
Because the pears are pureed after cooking a bit, there’s no need to peel unless you truly want to. I never do.
Whole not Ground Spices
The spices are infused lightly throughout the cooking process, giving just a hint of their flavor, rather than becoming overpowering as so often happens with dried ground spices.
The spices are important here for the best possible flavor. In my experience the health food store is the best place to buy small amounts of each.
Whole star anise isn’t something many of us probably use a bunch of so look for just a few in the bulk section of your local store.
Dried ginger can also likely be found in the bulk section. I haven’t tried it but fresh could probably be substituted but it might add a little heat to the butter.
Vanilla beans can be quite expensive, I know, but in this recipe they add just a bit of background warmth. If the beans are just not an option for the budget, add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract just before putting it to jars.
Sweetener Choices
There’s just a bit of maple syrup to help sweeten and add another bit of flavor rather than making the pear butter cloyingly sweet. Add more or less to taste.
You could substitute honey or sugar if you prefer, again more or less to taste.
If you like the maple syrup angle, my apple butter and cranberry apple butter are worth trying too.
Use the Slow Cooker
The great thing about fruit butters is that they can cook down in the slow cooker, making the house smell good, and allowing you to do other things than stir the cooking mixture on the stove. Simply leave the lid off the slow cooker and let the water evaporate.
A fruit butter is done cooking when it’s thick and creamy. It should mound on a spoon. The time it takes to get thick will vary depending on water content in the pears, size of the slow cooker, etc. Just dip a spoon into the butter and see if it mounds rather than pours off the spoon.
Option to Freeze
If you don’t want to run the jars through the canning process, this pear butter freezes well, just thaw before trying to spread it.
Use up frozen butter within 1 year.
How to Store
Properly canned these jars should keep for about 18 months in the pantry. Once opened, keep jars in the refrigerator where they should last about a month.
How to Use Pear Butter
Use this pear butter on toast, spread on pancakes, warm it slightly and pour over cake and ice cream.
It makes a great gift to put in baskets with a loaf of homemade bread.
Vanilla Pear Butter Recipe for Canning
Can jars of pear butter sweetened with maple syrup, lightly spiced and full of vanilla for an easy fall preserve to keep in the pantry or give as a gift.
Ingredients
- 5 Pounds Pears, cored and coarsely chopped
- ⅓ Cup Lemon Juice
- 2 Cups Water
- 4 Whole Star Anise
- 2 Vanilla Beans, split and cut into 1" pieces
- 1 Piece of Dried Ginger, about 1" long
- ½ Cup Maple Syrup
Instructions
- Put the star anise, dried ginger, and vanilla pieces into a large tea ball or wrap in cheese cloth for a spice bag.
- In a pot, put the pears, lemon juice, water, and spice ball. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer gently until the fruit is soft. Remove the spice ball and purée the fruit until smooth.
- Pour the puréed fruit into a slow cooker, stir in the maple syrup, and add the spice ball. Leave the lid off and turn the cooker on high. Cook until the pear butter is thick and mounds on a spoon without running off (probably three hours but actual time will vary based on the fruit's water content).
- To can, pour into jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Process in a hot water bath for 20 minutes, adjusting time for elevation.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
128Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 13Total Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gSodium: 1mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 0g
We try our best but cannot guarantee that nutrition information is 100% accurate.
LOVE THIS!!!!
I make this every year, now that I have this amazing simple recipe. It really is a delicacy!
Also, the apple-cranberry butter is another lovely winter butter.
Both are very good addition at Thanksgiving! or all winter!
Yay Fall Harvest Time!
Thank you so much :)
Thank you so much for saying so!