In Praise of Pears
Pears in their prime, with a recipe for Pear Sharlotka Cake.
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Hello Everyone.
It’s not quite winter, but I am already dipping into my winter root cellar. Once upon a time, I had a proper root cellar, built onto the north side of the house, where the temperature stayed a few degrees above freezing. Nowadays, I have shelves in the cool basement lined with jars of jam, chutney and pickles, winter squash, apples, and sometimes pears.
Pears are an underappreciated fruit, yet deserve to be recognized as one of the classic fruits of fall and winter. Unless you grow pears, it might be hard to distinguish between a Bartlet or a Bosc, Red Anjou, or Seckel. Growing pears in Vermont are not as popular as apples, which is why I delight when they appear in the local market and bring home a bunch hoping to preserve them in the cool basement.
The flavor is subtle, yet juicy with an aromatic quality all its own, always tender enough to eat without peeling. Slices of pear or pear chutney alongside sharp cheddar cheese is my happy hour favorite along with a glass of Chardonnay. It’s a little tricky to tell when pears are ripe, however, and more often than not they will ripen all at once, overnight, too quickly going from rock hard to mushy soft.
With a half bushel of pears in my cool basement all about to ripen at the same time, the creation of the Pear Sharlotka Cake was born. A riff on the tried-and-true Apple Sharlotka cake, a recipe I’ve made many times over, this cake was already a winner in my book. A good recipe is adaptable to substituting similar ingredients, and all too often, I improvise in the kitchen, changing an ingredient or not measuring accurately which is why I am not a proficient baker.
Most of the time it works out, yet as a cookbook writer, I should know better. Measuring and following instructions is something I find hard to do because I often think I have a better idea. In my recent cookbook writing class, I found that I was not alone. Some of the best cooks I know love recipes, yet don’t follow them exactly.
Thinking about pears this time of year, I am reminded that most of my favorite recipes are made with pears; Pear and Arugula Salad, Pear Tartin, and Plum and Pear Chutney. For special occasions, my mother made spiced red wine poached pears, by peeling and simmering pears in sugar syrup. I always thought this was a terrible way to treat pears, which are simply perfect in their natural state.
My recipe for Pear Sharlotka Cake has a crusty meringue top, layered with thin slices from four unpeeled pears, and is easy to prepare for even non-bakers like myself. Writing a new recipe, like everything else, is always about building on experience and leaning on other cookbook writers to share their favorites.
So once I’d made this several times, and written down the recipe to share with you, I decided to google it only to find that others also have their variations. Proof that there is no such thing as an original recipe, so I can’t take full credit. But I can suggest that if you have pears ripening in a bowl, or in the root cellar, turn on the oven and give this recipe a try. It’s a little bit sweet, but not too much to have a slice for breakfast, or anytime during the day with a cup of tea.
Happy Holidays!
From my garden to yours,
Ellen Ecker Ogden
Ellen Ecker Ogden is a cookbook author and kitchen garden designer. www.ellenogden.com or Instagram
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