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Monday, October 15, 2007
Lose the Apples - Look for Pears!
Apples often hog the autumn spotlight when it comes to seasonal fruit, but they don't upstage pears when it comes to taste or nutritional value. Delicate and elegant, their buttery flesh make it worth the extra effort to enjoy them when they're perfectly ripe.
Do it for your health. If you eat them with the skin on, pears are a good source of dietary fiber. They contain some potassium and come in at about 100 calories per average-sized pear. Pears also contain vitamin C in their skin, but like most other fruits, when heated they lose much of it.
Selecting and Storing Pears are a plan-ahead fruit. They don't ripen well on the tree—becoming mealy and brown at the core. Instead, pears are best picked when they're mature, but still under-ripe, and allowed to ripen at the market or at home. Look for fruits with smooth skin and an intact stem. Ripen them at home at room temperature in a plastic bag poked with holes or in a loosely closed brown paper bag. Refrigerate them once they're ripe.
Some markets will sell ready-to-eat pears, but before you buy these, make sure they're carefully, individually wrapped and aren't stacked up more than two levels high. The pressure from the other fruits will likely bruise the flesh of a ripe pear. For the same reason, when you pack them up to take home from the market, make sure they're on top of the bag.
What to Do with Pears Pears are near perfect on their own, but you can also enjoy them:
With cheese. Slice a ripe pear and eat it with slivers of blue cheese. (You don't need much cheese to appreciate that these two foods are a perfect match.)
As a snack. Cut a pear in half, remove the core and stem, and fill with light cream cheese. Top with a drizzle of honey.
In a salad. Use pears instead of apples for a twist on a Waldorf salad. Sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent cut pears from browning.
As an ice cream topper. Sauté sliced pears in apple juice until soft and use to top frozen yogurt or low-calorie ice cream.
As a warm dessert. Pears and almonds complement one another well. Make a simple syrup from equal parts water and sugar and cook gently until sugar has dissolved. Cut pears in half the long way, core and cook both halves in syrup until softened. Drain, and serve topped with low-fat Cool Whip and toasted almonds.
In an elegant tart. For a simple pear tart, cut small, 4-inch diameter rounds from store-bought frozen puff pastry. Thinly slice pears and fan around puff pastry, overlapping slightly. Cook at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes. Melt a little apple jelly in the microwave and brush over tart top for a shiny finish.
Posted by HoodiaPharm HungerAway ::
5:28 AM ::
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