It was time to tackle the making of pear butter, and with a collection of ripe pears in addition to my sister’s adage of, “Just throw it in!” I set about preparing fruit for an over night simmer in the crock pot. The recipes I found were varied and included a large amount of sugar. What I soon discovered about fruit butter is–anything goes. Add flavors that appeal to you and let the crock pot do the work. This recipe uses little sugar and relies on the sweetness of the fruit for its flavor.
- 3 pounds ripe pears
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/8 tsp. nutmeg
- For overnight pear butter, assemble in the evening.
- Remove seeds from pears and place in a large bowl.
- Add lemon juice, zest, and nutmeg, stirring to coat fruit.
- Set crock pot on low, add fruit and cook overnight.
- In the morning, put the fruit in a high power blender or use an immersion blender until it is smooth, then return it to the crock pot and cook until it is the desired thickness.
Optional additions to add before cooking:
- Zest and juice of an orange or lemon
- Ground cinnamon
- Pinch of nutmeg, allspice, and/or cloves
- Fresh ginger
- Dash of pure vanilla
- Dash of pure almond extract
- Honey in place of sugar
