Pear Apple Butter With Cardamom Recipes

APPLE-PEAR BUTTER

Steps:

• In an 8- to 10-qt. heavy pot or Dutch oven combine apples, pears, and cider. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Press apple mixture through a food mill or sieve. (You should have 7 1/2 to 8 cups.) Return pulp to pot; discard skins.
• Stir in sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cook, uncovered, over very low heat 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours or until thick enough that mixture mounds on a spoon, stirring often.
• Place pot of apple butter in a sink filled with ice water; stir to cool. Ladle into clean wide-mouth half-pint freezer containers, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace. Seal and label. Store in refrigerator up to 2 weeks or freeze up to 6 months. Apple butter may darken slightly on freezing. Makes 5 to 6 half-pints.

PEAR-APPLE BUTTER WITH CARDAMOM

Steps:

• In a large pot, combine pears, apples, 3 cups water and brandy. Bring to a boil and cook over high heat until fruit is very soft and falling apart, 30 to 45 minutes.
• Run mixture through the fine mesh of a food mill to remove seeds and skin. Return purée to pot and stir in sugar, lemon juice, cardamom and salt. Simmer over low heat, stirring often to prevent scorching at the bottom of the pot, until butter is thick, jammy, sticky to the touch and chestnut-colored, about 2 1/2 hours. Stir in vanilla.
• If you plan to can the butter, while it simmers prepare the jars according to the instructions here; after it has simmered, spoon into hot sterilized jars and process as directed. Otherwise, let butter cool, then store in the refrigerator or freezer.

PEAR BUTTER WITH CARDAMOM AND CINNAMON

Steps:

• Combine pears, wine and lemon juice in heavy large Dutch oven. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until pears are tender, occasionally stirring and pushing pears into liquid to submerge, about 20 minutes.
• Working in batches, transfer mixture to processor; puree. Return to same pot. Add sugar, cinnamon and cardamom. Simmer over low heat until mixture thickens and mounds slightly on spoon, stirring often and partially covering if mixture splatters, about 2 hours. Transfer hot pear butter to clean jars. Cover and cool. Refrigerate. (Can be made 2 weeks ahead. Keep refrigerated.)