Pears pickled in merlot

1 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
10 Firm pears; such as Red
; Bartlett or Bosc
; (about 31/2 pound)
1 Fifth Merlot
3 cups Red wine vinegar
6 cups Granulated sugar
1 tablespoon Chopped fresh rosemary
3 Cinnamon sticks; each about 4 inches
; long

Directions

Peel the pears, leaving the stems intact. Set aside. Combine the wine, vinegar, sugar, rosemary, and cinnamon in a stainless-steel or other nonreactive pan large enough to hold all the whole pears eventually. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil, stirring often, until a thin syrup forms, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted utensil, slip the pears into the boiling syrup. Reduce the heat to medium and gently boil the pears, turning them in the syrup, until just barely cooked, 8 to 10 minutes. (Be careful not to overcook them to the point where they become mushy.) Using a slotted utensil, transfer the pears to clean, dry jars with sealable lids. To pack the pears, make a layer of pears, standing them upright, then add a second layer of pears, inverting them, to maximize the space. Ladle in the hot syrup, including the cinnamon sticks, to cover the pears completely and to fill the jars to within ½ inch of the rims. Using a damp cloth, wipe the rims clean.

Cover with the lids and process for 1 hour in a hot-water bath (see above instructions for processing hot-pack foods). Remove the jars and let them cool for 12 hours or overnight. Check for complete seals. Store the sealed jars in a cool, dark place. The pears will keep for up to 1 year. Once opened, keep refrigerated. Store any jar lacking a complete seal in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. Makes 3 pints.

Sealing Techniques And Equipment In the home canning of fruits and vegetables, the jars are heated in a hot-water bath until their interior temperatures are high enough to kill microbes and to stop enzyme activity. The jars are hermetically sealed during the process and the atmosphere in the jars becomes anaerobic.

Harmful microbes capable of living in high-acid foods-most fruits, tomatoes, and pickled fruit or vegetable preparations-are destroyed after being processed in boiling water, that is, in water that reaches 212oF. The length of time foods are processed depends upon the acidity of the food and the size of the jar or jars. Large jars take longer than small jars. The tight seal prevents contamination from new organisms, and the canned, high-acid foods may be safely stored at room temperature.

Clostridium botulinum produces the deadly toxin that causes botulism. The bacteria thrive in an anaerobic environment, but cannot live in a high-acid environment, which makes canned, high-acid foods safe from the risk of botulism.

Low-acid foods, however, are hospitable to harmful microbes, including Clostridium botulinum, that are not destroyed in a hot-water bath of 212oF.

Low-acid foods include meats and most vegetables, with the exception of tomatoes. To achieve the high temperatures necessary to destroy low-acid bacteria requires special pressure canning equipment.

Canning Hot-Pack Foods

If the food in the jar is hot and then covered with a hot liquid, it is a hot pack. It is also a hot pack if the food is cold or raw, yet is covered with hot liquid. Hot-pack jars go directly into the boiling water of a hot-water bath and the timing is started immediately.

The Hot-Water Bath

For hot-pack foods, have the water boiling in a canning kettle or other large pot. Ladle the prepared food into clean, dry glass jars with lids that will form hermetic seals. Using long-handled tongs or a jar holder, lower the filled jars into the boiling water. Make sure the jars are not touching either the bottom of the kettle or pot or one another. Add additional boiling water if necessary to ensure that the tops of the jars are covered by at least one inch of boiling water. Cover the pot and process the number of minutes directed in the specific recipe. Add more boiling water, if necessary, to keep the jars submerged.

When the processing period has ended, remove the jars and let them cool for 12 hours or overnight, then check for a complete seal. As screw-top ring lids seal, there is often an audible "ping." Also, the lid will be slightly concave if the seal is complete.

Although foods processed in a water bath may be stored at room temperature, storing them in a cool, dark place protects the foods from discoloration.

The Glass Pantry: The Pleasures of Simple Preserves by Georgeanne Brennan (Chronicle Books, copyright 1994 by Georgeanne Brennan).

Converted by MC_Buster.

Recipe by: Good Morning America Converted by MM_Buster v2.0l.

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