Yosemite and Brandied Pear Butter

Enjoying s'mores at Yosemite

Last week my amazing Okie family (pictured fuzzily to the left) came to California for a visit. Since we had all had quite enough of LA, we headed to Yosemite for some fresh air on Wednesday. My brother and his family stayed in the park (roughing it in the RV) while Mom, Dad, Pookie and I enjoyed the creature comforts of Pine Mountain Lake in Groveland, CA. If you ever have a chance to head up to the area you should be prepared for three intense experiences. First is the mind boggling twisting mountain roads that ensure that all you will see of the scenery is that solid yellow line of the road while you are driving. The second is the nearly constant "no service" message on your cell. Once you stop the car and quit looking at your phone, you will find an amazing landscape that offers breathtaking views every direction you look. I think it was well worth stress inducing driving and irritating lack of communication to take in the area. We had a great visit with the family and we all headed our own ways on Saturday.


Pookie and I decided (well, I decided and was in the drivers seat) to take the long winding CA 49 that passes through many of the historic mining communities of the 1849 California gold rush. All of the winding roads and dangerous looking passes made me think about those that braved the area looking for wealth before there were paved roads with solid yellow lines, occasional cell service and fast moving automobiles. It reminded me that I am designed for this century.

It was well past time for a break from driving when we came into Madera, CA and we stopped at Sumner Peck Ranch Fruit Stand on CA 41. The place was rather large with a lot of products grown and crafted in the area. I was hoping to get some local apples to transform into apple butter, but the apples all came from Washington so I settled on 7 pounds of giant fresh pears. My hectic work week left the pears sitting on the counter but luckily only one was sacrificed to Pookies fresh fruit whim before I got started on a batch of pear butter.

This morning I listened to my latest audio book (Insurgent by Veronica Roth) while peeling, coring and chopping the pears. Then I put them into a pot with 1 cup of water and the juice and zest of a lemon. After 5 minutes of simmering, I used a potato smasher to break the pears down more quickly then simmered for 15 minutes more. Once the puree was mostly smooth I measured it out and had a little over 7 cups of puree. So I put the puree back into the pot with 3 cups of sugar and simmered over medium head stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking. I grated a little less than half of a nutmeg into the pot and let it simmer until it was thick enough to mound on a spoon then added a cup of brandy. I let it simmer over low heat stirring occasionally until it got back to that mounding in a spoon consistency. Of course I was preparing the jars, lids and water bath while it was cooking down. It filled 6 half pint jars with about a cup left over to refrigerate and enjoy right now. I processed in a water bath for 15 minutes then set about cleaning up the sticky mess. I have to say making butter is a messy and often painful experience. I burned myself on boiling pear butter nearly every time I stirred despite my protective gear. But the result was an incredibly warm and tasty treat.

Did I mention that my neighbor has a peach tree just bursting with fruit? I'll bet you can guess what's next :-)