Pears are a delightful, but sometimes overlooked, Fall fruit. I recently came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Pear Honey and decided to give it a try. Pear Honey does not actually contain any honey; rather it is a delightful spread that is lovely on bread, toast, pancakes, and other foods. The Pear Honey was sweet with a nuanced tanginess and notes of citrus.
Here is the original recipe:
A hundred years ago many children attended small (often one-room) schools. The original recipe suggests using Pear Honey when making school lunches. Peanut Butter and Pear Honey sandwiches would be a nice change of pace from the usual Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches.
Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:
Pear Honey
12 Bartlett pears
4 cups water
4 cups sugar
juice from 2 lemons
Peel pears, cut into halves, core, and then grate the pears. Put the grated pears into a Dutch oven or other large pan, and add the water. Do not cover pan. Bring to a boil using medium heat, then reduce heat and gently simmer for 1/2 hour. Stir occasionally. Add sugar, and continue cooking until it is translucent and begins to thicken (approximately an additional 15 – 20 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice.
Ladle into hot one-half pint jars to within 1/4 inch of the top. Wipe jar rim and adjust lids. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
The name is misleading. I don’t think I have ever seen a commercial pear spread.
Pear Honey is an unusual name since the spread does not actually include any honey.
My grandmother taught me this man ymoons ago Haven’t made any in a good while..pear tree died on me.. lol
It’s not the same, but you’ll have to buy some pears. It’s always sad when a special fruit tree dies. We lost an apple tree last year that produced late ripening apples, and I know that we are going to really miss it as the fall progresses.
That looks interesting. I guess they don’t have to be Bartlett pears?
I’m no expert on this, but you probably could use other varieties, though I think that some varieties of pears are better for making jams and spreads than others. Some varieties cook down nicely; others hold their shape well and are great for canning, etc.
What a minefield eh?
🙂 The more we learn, the more we realize what we don’t know. It always seems like it’s possible to dig deeper and deeper into a topic.
👍
Lovely!
It’s tasty. I made pancakes over the week-end, and put some of the Pear Honey on them and it was delicious.
I’ll have to give it a try. Pears really are underused.
I think that you’ll like it.
Sheryl, you have done it again–tried something new that was old, and it has a wonderful history. As the recipe itself suggests, it is cooked until the consistency of “good strained honey.” The earliest mention I located in the US newspapers was 1875 when Miss S. E. Hambleton won 1st place for her pear honey at the Chester County, Pennsylvania fair in Oxford. Other winners were for tomato honey and rhubarb honey. That made me think the use of the term honey for items made from fruits was somewhat common and well-known–similar to our use of pear butter or apple butter when they are not butter, nor have butter in them. In 1883, Miss H. E. Frost won best for her pear honey at the La Cygne Fair, Kansas. Finally, in 1887 and subsequent years, a column ran in many newspapers across the US about how a woman had been “reading about Swiss pear honey” (apparently in Vick’s Illustrated Family Magazine, published by J. Vick in Rochester, N Y) and experimented with some pears that were becoming over-ripe. She (unnamed, or course as few women got a byline then) simmered pears in their juice in her oven and then boiled the syrup until it became thick in the consistency of honey. That item sparked the popularity of pear honey and other fruit honey, due to it being thick and clear and mildly sweet–like honey. The Swiss pear honey was made in Switzerland, and indeed, got its name from its sweet taste and honey-like texture, and was historically referred to as “poor man’s honey.” It is more commonly known in the US as pear butter. Google Swiss pear honey or pear honey, and one will come up with many current recipes, for it is still quite popular.
Weeeeeee!!!!
I love reading your research comments! They are always so informative.
I have learned so much from readers of this blog over the years. I am so fortunate to have such wonderful readers.
Wow, thanks for researching this. I never would have guessed that Pear Honey (and other fruit honeys) had such a long, fascinating history. Now I want to try to find a Rhubarb Honey recipe to make next spring. (Fingers crossed that it’s in a 1926 cookbook.)
Rhubarb honey showed up more in the Pennsylvania newspapers (probably not surprising to you), or those from England. The one recipe I found for it (from England) was basically the same as the pear honey instructions, only also called for a small amount of brown sugar “if you can get it.” No doubt, we all hate to have to wait another year, or at least, until January 2026!
I love how the recipe calls for a small amount of brown sugar “if you can get it.” Old recipes sometimes provide clues about what it was like to live back then in the most unexpected places.
So no sugar was added to the Swiss pear honey?
The original Swiss pear honey did not add sugar. The process was lengthy, requiring extended cooking time to soften the pears, then press them through a straining cloth to remove any particles, and then allow the straining cloth to drip until all juice was obtained. The juice was then cooked for as long as 7 hours to obtain the thick, darker colored honey-like texture and taste. The addition of sugar (and some recipes, a lot of sugar) was introduced by the Americans who wanted a faster version of making pear honey. Sound familiar, given the love of sugar in this country?
The old Swiss Pear Honey recipe sounds lovely (and healthier than recipes with lots of sugar). Back in the days of wood and coal stoves, it was so much easier for cooks to prepare recipes that required long periods of cooking.
The recipe that Suzassippi describes sounds like it doesn’t require sugar – what a nice, healthy option.
All this talk of cooking down fruit or rhubarb reminds me that King Arthur Baking Company sells Vermont Boiled Cider. It had no sugar added and is a wonderful apple syrup. It adds so much apple flavor to anything you use it with, in, or on. Apple pie is has more apple flavor and apple pancakes are marvelous with this syrup.
Thanks for the tip, Julia! I should get some and suggest Randy make apple pancakes next! 🥰
It is delicious!
Never made pear honey,sounds wonderful! In Ga we had a pear tree that yielded lots of those hard old fashion pears. They were very sweet, making wonderful pear butter after being cooked and blended well to remove the grainy texture.
mmm. . . pear butter also sounds really good.
This reminds me of all the preserves my grandmother used to make. She was born in the late 1890’s and it was a way of life for them. Even after she could afford not to, she still would.
I would have liked your grandmother. Preserving food for the winter months was once an important part of the yearly routine. I sometimes think that something has been lost over the years.
I have made pear honey and pear butter ….and taken the peel and seeds and bits and pieces from canning pears to make a pear syrup.
But not since my pear tree died.
It’s always sad when a beloved fruit tree dies. I’m starting to think that pear trees don’t have particularly long lives. You are the second person who commented about their pear tree dying, and I can also remember a pear tree dying on our farm when I was a child.
I like how you used all of the pear parts and minimized the waste. One time I made vinegar from apple peels and cores and sometimes think that I should try doing that again, but it was a lot of work and never have.
This sounds lovely. I like the taste of Bartlett pears, but not the grainy texture.
I have an open jar of Pear Honey in my refrigerator. Your comment sent me to the kitchen to taste it. The process of cooking the Pear Honey softens the “grains”, but it still has a distinctive pear texture. I like the texture of the Pear Honey, and think that it adds to the spread.
Yes, to old-fashioned goodness, one spoonful at a time – pure perfection!
Exactly – Just a little Pear Honey can make toast and other foods a special treat.
That’s a lot of sugar!
Unfortunately, so many of the old jam, jelly, and spread recipes (as well as many modern ones) call for lots of sugar.
Looks so good. I can’t wait to try it!
You’ll like this recipe. It’s easy to make and tasty.