A pyramid of pearsI adjusted a recipe for canning pears to make them vanilla pears. I was pleasantly surprised how they turned out. I thought that because of the long (25 minute) processing time, the pears might get mushy, fortunately they didn't. Here is my recipe:
About 8 pounds of pears
4 tbs vanilla
4.5 cups water
2/3 cup sugar
Peel, core and quarter the pears (a melon baller works very well to core them). Stir together the water, sugar and vanilla in a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the pears and boil them in the vanilla syrup for 5 minutes. Pack the jars with pears, using tongs and then pour the hot syrup over the pears leaving 1/2" headspace. Process canned pears for 25 minutes (20 minutes if your altitude is below 1,000 feet)
Mix any remaining syrup with seltzer water for an Italian soda. :)
Yield: 6 pints.
Jasper began flying last night. :) My husband opened his cage and Jasper gave him some funny looks and flew up onto his back, and later onto his head. This morning when I went out to feed him he flew out of his cage and onto my lap peeping for food. Two feet seems to be his current range. I think tomorrow we will move him to the large enclosed aviary that was built for the new chickens coming in the fall. This way he will have plenty of room to practice flying and we can wean him before releasing him. I am afraid though that after all these car rides and hand feeding that he may not be able to be released. I'd hate to send him on his way and have him trying to make friends with things that would like to eat him.
