What to do with overripe pears?

Pears are one of life’s great pleasures. When they’re in season, you can buy them in bulk on the cheap and they’re the perfect on-the-go snack.

Since they’re such a big deal, we often buy more than we can realistically eat before they’re past their optimal freshness.

What can you do with overripe pears?

There are many things you can do with overripe pears. You can make pear crumble or crispy pear topping, pear butter, pear sauce and much more. You can even make healthy treats for the kids using dried pears.

If you’re wondering what to do with overripe pears, here are 13 delicious recipe ideas.

Is it safe to eat prunes?

Before getting into recipe ideas, it’s important to discuss whether overripe pears are safe to eat. Overripe pears are generally considered safe to eat once they have been cooked.

If the pear is soft to the point of mushy or mushy, it won’t taste as good raw. And it can cause some digestion problems. It is better that you cook them. As the fruit ripens, it becomes sweeter, which is perfect for desserts and treats.

13 Overripe Pear Recipe Ideas

As with most fruits, pears are excellent for baking. Whether you have a sweet tooth or not, there are ways to use your overripe pears that will delight all who have the pleasure of trying your culinary creations.

1. Pear crumble

One of the easiest recipes with ripe pears is the pear crumble.

All you have to do to make this mouth-watering dessert is slice the pears and season them in a baking dish. Then, top it with a streusel crumble made with floured butter and sugar.

You can add nuts to the topping if you want, or you can combine your pears with another fruit for the filling.

Just try to keep the size of each piece of fruit relatively similar so that it bakes evenly. Apples or peaches work well with pears in a crumble.

2. Pear Crisp

Like the pear crumble, the crisp is another very easy and delicious pear recipe to keep on hand.

The main difference between a crisp and a crumble is the topping. A crisp often includes oats in the topping, which breaks it up more, making it less dense and crumbly and more crunchy.

You can also add other items to the topping, such as nuts or seeds. Walnuts, in particular, add a crunchy, buttery touch to the pear crisp. Berries are a great option to add more flavor and texture to your pear crisp if you’re looking for a little more excitement.

3. Pear meatballs

Meatballs should not be reserved exclusively for savory dishes, as they make a delicious dessert. If you’re looking for the perfect recipe for overripe pears, look up pear dumplings.

There are two ways to do them. The first option is to create a big batch of pear sauce and cook round dumplings in the sauce.

The other option is a bit more visually impressive. Instead of making balls of dough, roll out the puff pastry so it’s just the right size to wrap around the poached and cored pears.

They can be baked in muffin tins until a golden crust forms and the pears inside practically melt in your mouth.

4. Pear cake

A cobbler is much like dessert dumplings, but instead of simmering in a sauce, the cobbler is baked.

Ripe pears absorb the flavor of spices like cinnamon and nutmeg during the baking process and become soft and smooth with just the right texture to create a really appealing mouthfeel.

The thick, doughy topping of the cobbler helps offset the sweetness of the ripe fruit, while absorbing much of the flavor. Every bite gives you something to look forward to.

5. Overripe Pear Muffins

If you like to grab a cupcake to go on a busy morning, you’ll never have to wonder what to do with old pears again. Overripe pear muffins can be made in large batches, using as many pears as you have at one time.

You can dress each cupcake slightly differently for a new experience with each batch. Cardamom, vanilla, walnut, banana and of course chocolate chips taste great with the sweet autumn flavor of overripe pears. Hmm.

If you spend all day baking 100+ cupcakes, you can freeze them individually and they will stay fresh for up to 6 months. An entire season of à la carte muffins is well worth an afternoon baking with your overripe pears.

Note : You can also substitute apples for pears in our Applesauce Muffins recipe.

6. Pear bread recipe

We’ve all enjoyed banana bread many times in our lives, so why not pear bread? If you don’t know what to do with ripe pears yet, mash them until they’re smooth. Then add them to your favorite quick bread recipe.

You can cut the pears into small pieces and add pieces of caramel for an even sweeter pear bread recipe.

To make vegan pear bread, swap the eggs for flax “eggs.” If your recipe calls for milk, our favorite plant-based option for pear bread is almond milk.

7. Pear Fruit Leather

If you have kids or just an ever-present inner child, making fruit leather is a fun and easy overripe pear recipe to put into practice.

Fruit leather is easier to make if you have a dehydrator, but it can also be made in the oven. To do this, investing in a silicone baking mat is a smart move for this type of recipe.

To make the fruit leather, simply simmer overripe pears until very tender with a little water, sugar and any spices of your choice. We like ginger for our pear fruit leather.

Puree until silky and spread the mixture on a shallow cookie sheet lined with a silicone mat.

Bake on very low heat, 170 F, for many hours. Start checking the leather after 5 hours, but don’t be surprised if it takes up to 8 hours for it to fully dehydrate.

8. Pear palette

If it’s a warm day and you’re wondering “what can I do with pears?”, whip up some pear popsicles.

There are many different ways to make this frozen treat. You can experiment daily if you have enough overripe pears.

Start by peeling and coring the pears, then blending until smooth.

You can transfer them to your popsicle molds to freeze the fruit as is. Or you can experiment with milk, yogurt, coconut cream, chia pudding, or even just various flavors like vanilla or chocolate.

9. Pear coffee cake

When you come up with things to do with pears, have you ever thought about coffee cake?

American coffee cake is any type of cake, usually a dense mini-meal, meant to be eaten at coffee break with a nice hot brew. Pear and coffee are a fantastic combination.

Interestingly, many people swap fruit puree for oil or butter in their pastries to add flavor and reduce fat. Making a coffee cake with some overripe pear puree is a good starting point for turning this into a baking habit.

And if you have any leftover, coffee and pound cakes are easy to freeze.

In other parts of the world, notably the United Kingdom, coffee cake often refers to a coffee-flavoured cake. Again, pear and coffee taste great together, so it’s still a delicious twist on your favorite cake.

Note : Pears would be a fabulous addition to our No Sour Cream Coffee Cake recipe.

10. Poached Pear Recipe

If you have a box of overripe fruit and need to figure out what to do with pears fast, try a poached pears recipe.

Poaching pears is a relatively quick and easy way to treat a lot of fruit in one go. They can then be reused in a variety of ways or frozen in syrup for months. Best of all, the longer the poached pears soak in their syrup, the better they will taste.

You can poach pears in any type of spiced or flavored syrup you like. Red wine is another popular way to poach pears.

11. Pear butter

When you’re trying to decide what to do with soft pears, butter may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but it should be.

Pear butter can be made in a similar way to applesauce or apple butter. Simmer your overripe pears in a pot with select spices, like cinnamon and ginger, then puree them until smooth.

You can enrich the butter by melting some real butter. Add a heavenly scent by including a bit of vanilla bean.

The secret to a creamy pear butter is to cook it very slowly. So if you want to maximize time, use a slow cooker.

12. Grilled Pear Dessert

If you have a hot barbecue or grill after making dinner, use that for dessert as well.

Cut the ripe pears in half or slices, brush lightly with a neutral-flavored oil, such as grapefruit seed oil, and grill until they have nice grill marks and are soft enough to cut easily.

Drizzle some honey over them, add a scoop of yogurt or ice cream, or scoop out the caramel sauce for an easy grilled pear dessert.

13. Pear Sauce Recipes

Pear sauce recipes are probably the most versatile way to use your overripe pears. The sauce can be eaten plain, used to make many of the desserts described above, or even spread on toast or pancakes.

You can make the pear sauce by simply simmering your overripe pears with a little water, sugar, and whatever combination of spices you like best. Once the pears practically melt when squeezed, beat the sauce until smooth.

And there you have it, thirteen delicious ways to use your overripe pears!