- After two weeks of Sand Pears in the pick box and me on my own, I decided to preserve them. Sand Pears are also known as Le Conte pears, after the guy who brought them to Georgia and cultivated them, John Eatton Le Conte Jr. His father was the Le Conte who wrote a fascinating, if not entirely accurate, government report on his exploration of the St John’s River and eastern Florida that he undertook in the Spring of 1822.
This recipe was based on one I found in Miarisa McClellan’s food in jars: preserving in small batches year round which I found at Kim Britt’s lovely bookstore at the East End Market Bookmark It
Spiced Pickled Sand Pears
- 2lbs of sand pears.
- 2 cups of distilled vinegar.
- 1 cup of sugar.
- 2 cups of water.
- 1/2 cup of honey (I used tupelo.)
- 4 slices of fresh ginger.
- 4 slices of lemon.
- 4 small sticks or cinnamon.
- 12 cloves.
Bring the vinegar, water, sugar, and honey to a boil. Peal the pears, cut them in halves or quarters and remove the seeds and stem. Distribute the ginger, lemon and cloves evenly between four canning jars (I ended up with two 500ml and two 250ml jars.) add the pears to the jars packing, but not squashing them. Pour in the pickling liquid and tap to remove the bubbles. Close with lids and boil in a water bath for ten minutes and keep for a week before eating. If you prepare the jars and lids correctly, and the seals are tight you can store these outside the fridge.
eatingflorida 