Winter pears...

The hot, dry summer this year brought a bumper crop of Macintosh apples, yellow plums, and winter pears. This small orchard, with trees just head-high when we moved into the farmhouse, produces more fruit than I can hope to use.



Our one pear tree was a slow bloomer, and it was years before it produced more than a handful of pears. It had been poorly pruned when small, and we had no clue how to prune fruit trees, so it was years before we knew enough to try and fix the shape of the tree. Ever since, it's done very well. I love to watch the tiny green pears grow all summer long, finally reaching full size in early October.



One of my favorite things to fix at harvest time is brie with pears. Just mix brown sugar and melted butter together, spread it over the top and sides of a round of brie, and bake until the cheese turns soft. Place the cheese on a fancy plate, surround it with slices of winter pears and tart apples, and cut a wedge out to give you access to all that yummy, gooey cheese.  My mouth is already watering.



This is the first pear in more than thirty years that matured with a shiny, red-blushed skin.