Cassell's dictionary of cookery

Pears, Stewed. — Pare, core, and halve eight or ten good-sized pears, leaving on the stalks or not, according to taste ; put them into a tinned saucepan, with six ounces of loaf sugar, six cloves, six whole allspice, three-quarters of a pint of water, and a glassful of port, and let them boil as gently as possible until they are quite soft without being broken. Lift them out, put them on a glass dish, and when the sjTup is cold strain it over them. A little Devonshire cream, or, failing this, a little custard, is a great improvement to this dish. Time to stew the pears, from two hours and a half to three hours. Probable cost. Is. 4d. Sufficient for five or six persons. Pears Stewed in Butter.— Take half a dozen large baking pears, pare and core without breaking them, and fill the cavity in each with a clove crushed to powder, a little moist PEA (526) PEA sugar, and a small lump of butter. Put them into a stewpan with the stalk ends uppermost, and pour over them three ounces of clarified butter ; cover the saucepan closely, and let them stew gently until they are quite soft without being broken, then lift them out carefully, fill the hollows with red currant jelly, and arrange the pears on a dish, with the narrow parts meeting in the centre. Pile half a dozen macaroons which have been soaked in sherry in the centre of the fruit, pour the syrup round it, and serve. Time to stew the pears, about one hour. Probable cost, exclusive of the sherry, Is. 2d. Sufficient for five or six persons. Pears Stewed in Vinegar (for Dessert). —Pare smoothly two pounds of small winter pears, cut them in halves, and take out the cores. Boil a pint of vinegar, twelve cloves, twelve ounces of sugar, and a stick of cinnamon for ten minutes. Put the pears into the syrup, and let them simmer very gently until they are sufficiently tender to be pierced easily -with a pin. Take them out carefully, drain them, and put them into jars. Boil the syrup quickly until it is quite thick, and when it is cold pour it over the fruit, which must be covered with it. Tie down the jars with bladder, and store in a cool dry place. At the end of a week look at the fruit, and if the syrup has turned their colour boil it over again. Time to stew the pears, until tender; the time will vary with the quality of the pears. Probable cost, Is. 3d. Pears, Stewed, To Colour.— This may be done in several waj-s. Port wine and a few drops of liquid cochineal will impart a bright red colour. Or some fine white candied sugar dissolved in a wine-glassful of port wine may be added to a moderate-sized dish of pears. Or pears may be stewed in a block-tin vessel, which will give a fine red. Pears, The Pips of [see Apples and Pears, The Pips of).