CANNING: Pear Halves in Vanilla or Cinnamon Syrup
- Canning pears in syrup or juice
- Tips and tools for canning pears
- How to can vanilla or cinnamon pear halves
- Canning Pear Halves in Vanilla or Cinnamon Simple Syrup
Our Bartlett pear tree was laden with several times more fruit than ever this year, which means I finally had enough to put up in multiple ways. Canning pear halves in syrup is a perfect way to preserve the most beautiful of the pears to enjoy on their own, or to make elegant open-faced fruit tarts all winter.
You can use water or fruit juice for these, but I like to make a medium-light simple syrup, lightly flavored with vanilla beans or cinnamon sticks and lemon.
This is an easy water bath canning recipe, so you don’t need a lot of specialized equipment and it’s very beginner-friendly.
Even if you have never canned before, you can absolutely learn to make these canned pear halves in just a few hours. If you can peel fruit and boil water, you can do this!
Canning pears in syrup or juice
The pears will keep their bright white color and firm texture longer when canned in simple syrup than ones in plain water or even apple juice, though if you prefer, you can reduce or eliminate the sugar, or replace it with honey.
And, after you enjoy the pears, you can use the flavored syrup mixed with sparkling water for homemade sodas and Italian cream sodas, in coffee or tea drinks, in cocktails, or to flavor iced tea. You can also use it to moisten the layers of genoise in a French sponge cake, or to dunk madelines.
This isn’t the thick heavy cloying high-fructose corn syrup of commercially canned pears, but light and mildly sweet, and bright with lemon and vanilla or sweet spices.
Note: I like to make the simple syrup with vanilla, and add cinnamon sticks to some of the jars, but you can make them all-vanilla or all-cinnamon, or even plain. If you want to experiment with other spices, you can use whole star-anise or whole allspice berries, a clove or two, coriander or cardamom, or even pink peppercorns, though it’s always best to try a jar or two to make sure you like it before doing a whole batch.
Tips and tools for canning pears
Canning pear halves is simple if you have perfect fruit. If you’re working with less-than-perfect fruits (like the ones from our un-sprayed front yard tree) I like to can halves or slices like this along with a batch of pear butter, sauce, jam, or chutney.
- This job is a lot easier if you use a sturdy serrated fruit corer and a good sharp peeler.
- You’ll need a large pot or canner with a rack or trivet to process the jars.
- Another large pot to make the syrup and poach the pears before jarring them.
- You’ll also need quart or pint size canning jars and new canning lids.
- A set of jar lifter tongs, a good sized ladle, and a jar funnel will also be really helpful.
As you peel and core the fruit, save the best and nicest ones to can as cored halves, or quarters, or even small whole cored fruits. Any uneven pieces, damaged, lumpy or misshapen pears, or ones that are unevenly ripe can be trimmed, chopped and tossed into the simmering pot of sauce, jam, or chutney. Alternately, you can freeze these trimmings to use later if you aren’t up to two canning projects in one day!
For more information about what you’ll need if you’re new to canning, you can learn more here:
CANNING: Equipment Guide- What Do I Need to Start Canning at Home?
How to can vanilla or cinnamon pear halves
prep the simple syrup, canning pot and jars:
- Fill a large canning pot with water, cover, and bring to a boil.
- Place the canning jars (but not the lids) in the pot of water to heat and sterilize the jars.
- Make simple syrup in a medium sized pot. The quantity listed should be enough for four quarts of pears. You can double or halve this recipe, although if you halve it, you will need a small pot and to work in small batches to poach the pears before jarring them. Add your cinnamon sticks or split vanilla bean to the syrup if you are using them.
prep the pear halves or slices:
- Fill a large mixing bowl half-full with cold water and Fruit Fresh or a few tablespoons of citric acid. You can also squeeze halved lemons or a splash of lemon juice in the water.
- Wash the pears, then peel and core them and slice them into halves. Dip them into the lemon water as you work to prevent browning, and place the finished halves in the water as you peel and process the rest. A coring tool is very helpful, although you can also carefully core them with a paring knife, or slice them into quarters and use a chef’s knife to slice the cores at an angle to remove them.
- Working in batches, poach the pear halves in the simmering syrup for several minutes, until they are heated through but still firm. Use a slotted spoon or spider to gently remove the pears from the hot syrup.
pack the poached pears in jars:
- Carefully transfer them to the hot jars, and top up with syrup, leaving a ½” head space. Divide the flavored syrup evenly among the jars, and if needed, top up with boiling water (or reserve extra syrup for other batches, or store in the refrigerator).
- Using a debubbler tool, chopstick, or thin spatula, stir gently to remove air bubbles, and place a cinnamon stick or slice of vanilla bean in each jar, pressed down between the pears and the glass.
- Wipe the rims of the jars and top with clean lids and rings.
process the jars in the water-bath:
- Using a canning rack or jar tongs, transfer the hot jars to the boiling water to cover. If needed, top up the pot with more boiling water so that the jars are covered by several inches of water. When the pot has returned to a boil, start your timer, and process quart jars for 25 minutes in the boiling water bath.
- When the timer is up, turn off the heat. After five minutes, uncover the pot (away from you, being mindful of the steam), and carefully remove the jars. Let them cool on a folded kitchen towel or wooden surface (do not place hot jars directly onto a cold countertop). Leave them undisturbed until fully cool (overnight or at least 6-8 hours).
- Check the seals within 24 hours, remove the rings, and wash, label, and store the jars. Any that aren’t sealed can be immediately reprocessed with fresh lids, or refrigerated to use within a week.
- Store in a cool, dark place. Your home canned pears are best if used in the first 12-18 months, but will be safe to eat longer than that as long as the seal is intact, they were properly canned, show no signs of spoilage, and are properly stored.
Canning Pear Halves in Vanilla or Cinnamon Simple Syrup
Equipment
- mason jars and new canning lids
- canning jar tongs or rack with handles
Ingredients
- firm, ripe pears
- lemon juice or fresh lemons
- 2 tbsp citric acid or Fruit Fresh
Medium-Light Simple Syrup
- 5 cups water
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- vanilla bean and/or cinnamon sticks
Instructions
prep the simple syrup, canning pot and jars:
- Fill a large canning pot with water, cover, and bring to a boil. Place the canning jars (but not the lids) in the pot of water to heat and sterilize the jars.
- Make simple syrup in a medium sized pot. The quantity listed should be enough for four quarts of pears. You can double or halve this, although if you halve it, you will need a small pot and to work in small batches to poach the pears before jarring them. Add your cinnamon sticks or split vanilla bean to the syrup if you are using them. See notes.
prep the pear halves or slices:
- Fill a large mixing bowl half-full with cold water and Fruit Fresh or a few tablespoons of citric acid. You can also squeeze halved lemons or a splash of lemon juice in the water.
- Wash the pears, then peel and core them and slice them into halves. Dip them into the lemon water as you work to prevent browning, and place the finished halves in the water as you peel and process the rest. A coring tool is very helpful, although you can also carefully core them with a paring knife, or slice them into quarters and use a chef's knife to slice the cores at an angle to remove them.
- Working in batches, poach the pear halves in the simmering syrup for several minutes, until they are heated through but still firm. Use a slotted spoon or spider to gently remove the pears from the hot syrup.
pack the poached pears in jars:
- Carefully transfer them to the hot jars, and top up with syrup, leaving a ½" head space. Divide the flavored syrup evenly among the jars, and if needed, top up with boiling water (or reserve extra syrup for other batches, or store in the refrigerator). Using a debubbler tool, chopstick, or thin spatula, stir gently to remove air bubbles, and place a cinnamon stick or slice of vanilla bean in each jar, pressed down between the pears and the glass.
process the jars in the water-bath:
- Wipe the rims of the jars and top with clean lids and rings. Using a canning rack or jar tongs, transfer the hot jars to the boiling water to cover. If needed, top up the pot with more boiling water so that the jars are covered by several inches of water. When the pot has returned to a boil, start your timer, and process quart jars for 25 minutes in the boiling water bath.
- When the timer is up, turn off the heat. After five minutes, uncover the pot (away from you, being mindful of the steam), and carefully remove the jars. Let them cool on a folded kitchen towel or wooden surface (do not place hot jars directly onto a cold countertop). Leave them undisturbed until fully cool (overnight or at least 6-8 hours).
- Check the seals within 24 hours, remove the rings, and wash, label, and store the jars. Any that aren't sealed can be immediately reprocessed with fresh lids, or refrigerated to use within a week. Store in a cool, dark place.