PEARS, SAYS LEO

“What should I blog about this week?” I ask, not really expecting an answer. Looking up from his breakfast, Leo says, “Pears. Pudding.” In Brit-speak (my grandson’s mother’s tongue), “pudding” means “dessert,” or any sweet. 

Inspiration: ripe pears.

In front of us on the table is a bowl heaped with pears picked from my neighbor’s garden. They’ve taken almost two weeks to ripen and now they are perfectly sweet, but still firm. So, OK, Leo, this is for you, a sweet pear cake.

Chopped pears go into the batter with olive oil and yogurt for a sweet and simple cake.

I'm serving the pear cake with unsweetened Greek-style yogurt.

Olive oil makes a moist cake.

Ice cream would also be lovely with the pear cake.

Pear Cake with Olive Oil
Bizcocho de Peras con Aceite de Oliva

Use any variety of pear for this cake. The pears should be ripe, but firm. Either grate them coarsely or cut in small dice so they soften during baking but still have some texture.

Bake this cake in a sheet pan or bundt mold. The deep bundt pan will require longer baking time than sheet pan.

12 ounces firm, ripe pears (2-3), peeled and cored
1 teaspoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 cups + 3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil + additional to oil the pan
½ cup plain yogurt

Preheat oven to 360ºF. Oil a 6-cup  bundt pan.

Coarsely grate or finely dice the pears. You should have about 1 ¼ cups fruit. Sprinkle with the lemon juice and stir in the zest. Set aside.

Sift the flour with the baking powder, soda, salt and cardamom into a small bowl.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the sugar and eggs until light. Beat in the oil and yogurt until batter is smooth. Add the flour mixture gradually and beat until just smooth.

Fold the pears into the cake batter. Pour into oiled pan. Bake until cake pulls away from sides of the pan and a thin skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean, about 35 minutes.

Cool the cake in the pan.

Cool the cake in the pan for 20 minutes. Loosen the edges with a thin knife. Invert the pan onto a rack. Allow to cool completely. 

Cool completely.

More recipes with pears:

Pear Gazpacho.

Pears in Málaga Wine.

Pear and Fennel Salad with Walnuts.

Pears in Cava with Fresh Cheese.

Cheese Custard Tart with Pears.

GAZPACHO WITHOUT TOMATOES?

Last year by mid-August, I was in tomato heaven, enjoying gazpacho daily and stashing garden tomatoes in the freezer for sofrito futures. This has been a disappointing year for tomatoes. I haven’t made a single gazpacho so far. I could buy tomatoes, sure, but they would never match the incomparable flavor of the home-grown ones.

Last year, tomatoes from the garden. This year, zilch.

But, while I’m bereft of tomatoes (and cucumbers and peppers, too), I’ve got a basket full of sweet pears. Maybe I could make gazpacho with pears in place of tomatoes?

Pears to replace tomatoes in gazpacho?

By my own definition, gazpacho requires only bread, garlic and olive oil and it doesn’t have to be red. Tomatoes and other fruits of the vegetable garden are modern additions to what is a very ancient peasant food. (Although, I have been pretty strident on what gazpacho doesn’t include: no tomato juice; no canned tomatoes; no tomatoes dropped in boiling water to facilitate peeling them; no ketchup; no chicken stock or beef stock; no pepper or chile; no salsa; no beets or watermelon or strawberries.) (Here is another recipe for gazpacho with no tomatoes Peasant Gazpacho with Cucumber)

So, pear gazpacho it is. With the addition of ground almond meal, it has similarities to ajo blanco, a white garlic gazpacho made with almonds. While gazpacho is a savory cold soup, served as an aperitif, this one, with some tweaking, makes an excellent dessert!

Gazpacho needs a garnish, both for visual and textural contrast. Crispy croutons are good. Crunchy chopped scallions would go with the sweet pears. In honor of the tomatoes I have not got, I used chopped cherry tomatoes plus a little shredded basil.

Chilled pear gazpacho served with chopped cherry tomatoes and sprigs of basil.

Serve with crispy croutons or bread sticks.

Olive oil and bread give the gazpacho a creamy texture.

Pear Gazpacho
Gazpacho de Peras

Makes 4 (½ -cup) servings.

Pears, almond meal, garlic, bread.

½ cup bread crumbs (1 slice, crusts removed)
Water
2 cups diced pears (4 pears)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup unsweetened ground almonds
3 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar
½ teaspoon aguardiente (anisette liqueur, optional)
Tomatoes and basil leaves to garnish

To make a sweet dessert pear gazpacho, omit the garlic and salt. Replace the vinegar with 1 tablespoon of honey. Use ¼ cup cream in place of the olive oil. Add a pinch of cinnamon or allspice. Blend the pears with bread, as for the savory gazpacho.

Place the crumbs in a small bowl and add ½ cup water. Soak the bread 10 minutes to soften. Squeeze out the bread.

Place the pears in a blender with the lemon juice (to prevent fruit from turning dark). Add the bread, ground almonds, garlic and salt. Blend until smooth. Add  the oil, vinegar and anisette if using. Blend to emulsify to a creamy texture. Blend in ½ cup water. Chill the gazpacho.

Stir the gazpacho before serving. (Add additional water if gazpacho seems too thick.) Serve the gazpacho in small cups, garnished with chopped tomatoes and shredded basil.

Follow the five-part “Gazpacho Diaries” for just about everything you ever wanted to know about gazpacho. A recipe for traditional Andalusian gazpacho is here.

More variations on gazpacho:

Cherry Gazpacho.

Cucumber Gazpacho.

No-Bread Gazpacho.

Gazpacho with Harissa.

White Gazpacho with Grapes (Ajo Blanco).

White Gazpacho with Pine Nuts. 

 Gazpacho Cream (Salmorejo).

More recipes with pears: 

Pear and Fennel Salad with Walnuts. 

Cheese-Custard Tart with Pears. 

Sangría with Pears. 

Pears in Málaga Wine. 

FROM MY NEIGHBOR'S GARDEN

Pears (and a few lemons) from my neighbor's garden.

Before they’re even ripe, the pears on my neighbor’s trees attract big jay birds that peck at the fruit. To save the crop, we’re picking the pears early. But after a week on a sunny table, they still haven’t begun to soften. I cut up some of them and made a batch of pear chutney. Now I’m making a Spanish dessert by simmering the pears in wine.

No, not red wine, as in the classic French way. These pears are cooked in sweet Málaga wine.

Wine label.

Málaga wine is made from Pedro Ximénez and Muscatel grapes that are “raisinified,” or sun-dried, before pressing, a process which intensifies the sugars. Sometimes called “liquid raisin,” it is a delightful dessert wine, but also goes nicely with toasted almonds, cheeses, sausage.

Málaga wine, Málaga raisins.

Serve Málaga wine, chilled, in liqueur glasses, Sherry copas or over ice. Diluted with soda water, it makes a nice tall drink. In the kitchen, sweet Málaga is a good addition to pork and chicken dishes, especially if balanced with a little vinegar.

I cooked the pears in the wine, with the addition of cinnamon, clove and lemon zest, until they were tender when tested with a skewer. As the wine is sweet, I didn’t add sugar. And, because the compote reminds me somewhat of another dessert cooked in wine must, arrope (that recipe is here), I added some chunks of pumpkin to the pears. Slivers of toasted almonds (the almonds also from my neighbor’s garden) made a crunchy topping.

The fruit is lovely topped with whipped cream or, my choice, dollops of unsweetened Greek yogurt.

Pears, pumpkin and raisins simmered in sweet Málaga wine.

Peras al Vino de Málaga
Pears in Málaga Wine

Serves 6.

2 pounds firm pears, about 10
   (or 1 pound pears and 1 pound pumpkin)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup sugar (optional)
2-inch cinnamon stick
2 cloves
1 strip lemon zest
¼ cup Moscatel raisins
½ cup sweet Málaga wine
½ cup water
¼ cup almonds, blanched, skinned, toasted and slivered
Greek yogurt, to serve, if desired

Peel the pears, core them and cut in halves or quarters. If using pumpkin, remove skin and seeds and cut it into chunks. Place the fruit in a pan and toss with lemon juice. Add sugar, if using, cinnamon stick, cloves, lemon zest, raisins, wine and water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer until the pears are tender when tested with a skewer, about 35 minutes.