My first experience with Southern-grown pears was in our home in Lexington, KY during my residency. We planted three pear trees of the Moonglow variety. They shot-up unbelievably tall in the four short years we lived there. As I recall, we ate a pear or two from those trees, though they were not exactly abundant producers. On moving back to Birmingham, now more than 10 years ago, we planted two pear trees at the corner of our house. These are Orient and Moonglow pears. The Orient variety has a finer, less grainy flesh and a diamond shape with blushed-red cheeks. Although more classically textured, the Moonglow pears are sweeter and can get larger than a baseball in size. Enjoy our variation on pear bread!
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INGREDIENTS
4 c. shredded Moonglow Pears (or the firm, sweet pear variety of your choice)
5 large eggs
2-1/2 c. sugar
1-1/2 c. peanut oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
5 c. all purpose flour (may use 1/2 self-rising)
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1.5 tsp. salt
Mix the salt, baking powder, and flour and set aside. Combine the eggs, sugar, peanut oil, vanilla extract, and spices in a mixing bowl. Slowly add the dry ingredients . When these ingredients are well-mixed, add-in the pears and mix until even. If the pears are especially juicy, up to an extra 1/2 c. flour may be added to thicken the batter. This should be enough to fill six small (3"x6") loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center of the loaf comes out clean. We top our loaves with homemade pear preserves about 10 minutes before they're finished baking. This gives them a nice shine and a little extra pear zing!
4 c. shredded Moonglow Pears (or the firm, sweet pear variety of your choice)
5 large eggs
2-1/2 c. sugar
1-1/2 c. peanut oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
5 c. all purpose flour (may use 1/2 self-rising)
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1.5 tsp. salt
Mix the salt, baking powder, and flour and set aside. Combine the eggs, sugar, peanut oil, vanilla extract, and spices in a mixing bowl. Slowly add the dry ingredients . When these ingredients are well-mixed, add-in the pears and mix until even. If the pears are especially juicy, up to an extra 1/2 c. flour may be added to thicken the batter. This should be enough to fill six small (3"x6") loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center of the loaf comes out clean. We top our loaves with homemade pear preserves about 10 minutes before they're finished baking. This gives them a nice shine and a little extra pear zing!