To cook, to eat and to learn...

originally published Thursday, March 1st

A noble fruit, a handy gadget and a delicious magazine

Pears
Tis the season to eat Pome fruits. When I need a break from apples I often turn to it's relative, the pear. Back home in Arkansas I had a pear tree in my back yard. Those perfectly ripe, perfumey, melt in your mouth fruits right outside my kitchen window are synonomous with memories of home. Though I no longer have a pear tree of my own, I am lucky to live in close proximity to farmers who do!
Pears, native to Central Asia, have been culivated for over 3,000 years. Prized by the ancient Egyptians, Romans, Greeks and Chinese, pear varieties number in the hundreds. Pears are high in fiber, potassium and boron and are thought to be a cleansing fruit. They can be eaten out of hand, baked, pickled, poached and like apples, can be made into a delicious sauce or butter.
Most commercial American pears are grown in Washington, Oregon and California. Common varieties include Bartlett, Anjou, Bosc, Comice, Packham and Seckel.
Seckel and Bartlett pears are available in late summer while winter pears like Bosc are available from early fall to spring. Pears are best ripened off the tree and store well, making them a perfect winter fruit.
Sweet pears like Anjou and Bartlett are my favorite for slicing and eating. Ripe Seckels are especially good with cheese! and firm, elegantly shaped Boscs are best for baking and poaching.
Lately I've been adding Bosc pears to my Fuji applesauce. They add a delicious aroma and a bit of texture which perfectly complements the sweet cooked apples. Stay tuned for a recipe.

The Food Mill
If you like to cook, here's an inexpensive piece of equipment you're sure to love and find many uses for. It's a cone shaped metal object with a hand crank and a screen in the bottom with circular holes. Sometimes it's also called a ricer, but it does so much more.
I first started to use a food mill working at a Mediterranean restaurant where we made our own roasted tomato sauce every day. Food mills are primarily used to puree ingredients and leave skins and seeds behind (as in the case of tomatoes). It makes perfect tomato sauce, apple sauce, fluffy mashed potatoes and pureed soups.
In my opinion there is a marked difference in the flavor of food when it's made by hand, instead of subjected to electrically powered blades. Food mills also preserve a bit of the texture and integrity of the fruit and vegetables that a blender would not. If it's a more rustic tomato sauce you are looking for, or a smooth, creamy bowl of mashed potatoes give it a try!
I recommend buying a stainless steel mill, with three removable screens (with different size holes).
Don't spend too much. Any restaurant supply should carry a model appropriate for home use for under $30. There are also smaller varieties sold especially for making baby food, but you might as well buy a larger one you can use for everything.
To make a delicious Fuji apple-Bosc pear sauce, chop 2 apples and 2 pears. Drop chopped fruit in a sauce pan and cover with water. Add a pinch of salt, bring to a boil and simmer covered for at least 30 minutes. Check occasionally to make sure there is still water in the pot. When apples and pears are soft, puree through a food mill and serve warm! Delicious.

Edible Brooklyn
Just in case you haven't seen it yet, keep an eye out for the new issue of Edible Brooklyn . Published quarterly (seasonally) this magazine is a great resource for Brooklyn foodies. Covering artisanal/authentic food producers and purveyors in our very own borough. Complete with seasonal recipes and a restaurant directory, I read each issue cover to cover (and always get hungry!)