Pears are a delicious and versatile fruit that can be used in many different ways. Whether you’ve picked too many pears from your backyard tree or bought a bushel at the farmers market, you may be wondering what to do with your pear bounty. There are countless recipes and ideas for using up extra pears, from breakfasts to desserts and everything in between. Keep reading to discover over 25 ways to enjoy pears!
Breakfast Recipes
Pears lend their sweetness and flavor wonderfully to so many breakfast dishes. Here are some delicious ways to start your day with this fruit:
- Make pear pancake or waffle topping. Dice pears and saute with butter, cinnamon, and a touch of maple syrup. Spoon over your favorite pancake or waffle recipe.
- Add diced pears, walnuts, and blue cheese to a spinach salad for a sweet and savory breakfast salad.
- Bake pears and stuff with oatmeal, nuts, honey or maple syrup, and cinnamon. Bake stuffed pears in the oven until heated through for an easy grab-and-go breakfast.
- Blend pears with yogurt, milk or nut milk, nuts, chia seeds, cinnamon, and vanilla for a creamy breakfast smoothie.
- Make French toast stuffed with sliced pears and ricotta cheese or mascarpone cheese.
- Saute pears in butter and spoon over oatmeal or yogurt along with chopped nuts and cinnamon.
- Bake sliced pears and top with granola, yogurt, and honey for a yummy pear and granola breakfast parfait.
Lunch and Dinner Recipes
Pears also make a tasty addition to savory lunch and dinner dishes. Some ideas include:
- Make a grilled cheese with brie cheese, prosciutto, and thin slices of pear.
- Roast pork tenderloin or chicken breasts stuffed with sliced pears and brie or gorgonzola cheese.
- Add diced pears to your favorite fall salad recipe along with nuts, cheese, and vinaigrette dressing.
- Saute sliced pears in butter or olive oil with shallots and rosemary. Spoon over pork chops or chicken.
- Puree pears in a blender with olive oil, garlic, parmesan cheese, and walnuts. Toss with hot pasta for a creamy pear pasta sauce.
- Make pear salsa with diced pears, red onion, lime juice, cilantro, and jalapeno. Serve with fish tacos, chicken, or chips.
- Add diced pears to any stir fry recipe for sweetness.
- Saute sliced pears in butter and brown sugar. Serve over oatmeal, pancakes, or French toast.
Beverage Recipes
Pears can also be used to make tasty beverages like smoothies, cocktails, and hot drinks:
- Blend diced pears with yogurt, milk, cinnamon, and honey for a creamy pear smoothie.
- Muddle diced pears, basil leaves, and simple syrup in the bottom of a glass. Top with Prosecco for a delicious pear cocktail.
- Mix pear nectar with rum, triple sec, lime juice, and ginger beer for a fun pear mojito.
- Poach pears in red wine and serve over ice cream for an elegant dessert, or use the wine to make sangria.
- Make mulled pear cider by simmering apple cider with red wine, cinnamon sticks, cloves, diced pears, and orange slices.
- Slice pears and infuse in a pitcher of water overnight. Enjoy the subtly flavored pear infused water.
Baked Goods
The natural sweetness of pears makes them an ideal addition to all kinds of baked goods including pies, tarts, muffins, cakes, cobblers and more:
- Make a classic pear tart with sliced pears, an almond frangipane filling, and flaky puff pastry.
- Poach diced pears in cider and use as a filling for hand pies or turnovers.
- Blend diced pears into the batter for extra moist pear muffins or quick breads.
- Layer thinly sliced pears with sugar and cinnamon and bake into a pear crisp dessert.
- Puree or mash extra ripe pears and swap in for part of the butter or oil in cake or brownie recipes.
- Make mini pear tarts by baking sliced pears topped with vanilla pastry cream in mini phyllo cups.
- Use diced pears in an upside down cake, baking the fruit in the bottom of a cake pan topped with a pineapple upside down style batter.
Jams, Butters, and Preserves
An abundance of ripe pears are ideal for turning into sweet spreads and toppings that you can enjoy all year long:
- Cook pears down into a thick, sweet pear butter. Slather on toast, scones, or muffins.
- Can or freeze batches of homemade pear jam. Spread on sandwiches or swirl into yogurt or oatmeal.
- Turn pears into pear salsa and can or freeze to enjoy out of season. Use on tacos, pork, chicken, or fish.
- Cook pears with apple juice, cinnamon, and a touch of sweetener into a thick apple-pear sauce. Enjoy warm or cold.
- Dry slices of pears in a dehydrator or low oven to make dried pear rings. Rehydrate in water for a flavorful base for smoothies.
Fresh Eating Ideas
Of course, pears are delicious eaten fresh right out of hand. But there are lots of other ways to enjoy their fresh flavor:
- Slice pears and enjoy with a wedge of sharp cheese like bleu cheese, aged gouda, or chevre.
- Create a cheese board with fresh pears, nuts, and soft and hard cheeses.
- Dip pear slices in melted chocolate or drizzle with honey or maple syrup for a simple dessert.
- Skewer pear chunks and grill or broil with honey, lemon juice, cinnamon, and crushed nuts for a tasty grilled fruit dessert.
- Toss thinly sliced pears into your favorite leafy green salad for a pop of sweetness and crunch.
- Wrap prosciutto around fresh pear slices for an easy appetizer or snack.
Pear Snack Ideas
The portable size and sweet flavor of pears make them perfect for healthy snacking on the go. Some snack ideas include:
- Pack small containers of diced pears and nuts or seeds for an energizing at-work snack.
- Spread nut butter or cream cheese on pear slices for a protein-packed snack.
- Pair fresh pear slices with cheese sticks or cubes for a fiber-rich snack.
- Make portable pear nachos by topping diced pears with toasted nuts or seeds, shredded coconut, and a drizzle of nut butter or chocolate sauce.
- Skewer alternating cubes of pear with cheese cubes for snack kabobs.
- Spread wheat crackers with cream cheese and top with thin pear slices.
- Dip pear slices in Greek yogurt sweetened with a bit of honey.
Uses for Leftover Pear Parts
Don’t let any part of the pear go to waste! Here are creative ways to use up pear peels, cores, and seeds:
- Add pear trimmings (except for seeds, which contain trace amounts of cyanide) to a pitcher of water overnight to infuse the water with subtle pear flavor. Discard trimmings before drinking.
- Boil pear peels, cores, and seeds in water with cinnamon sticks and use as a base for poaching more pears.
- Dry leftover pear cores and peels in a dehydrator or low oven, then grind into powder. Use the powder to make pear-flavored baked goods or add to smoothies.
- Simmer cores, peels, and seeds in apple cider on the stove with cinnamon sticks. Strain out solids and use liquid to make mulled cider.
- Culture leftover pear cores with whey or veggie brine to make an easy homemade pear vinegar. Filter before using.
Conclusion
As you can see, pears are an extremely versatile fruit that can be used in breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks, baked goods, drinks, and more. Whether you’re cooking for yourself or a crowd, finding uses for extra pears is easy with this list of over 25 sweet and savory ideas. From pear pancakes to upside down pear cake and pear salsa, there are so many delicious ways to enjoy this fall fruit. With a little creativity, you can transform your pear surplus into convenient grab-and-go snacks, elegant holiday side dishes, and decadent desserts that will have everyone asking for seconds. So go ahead and let the pear inspiration flow – your tastebuds will thank you!
