In my last post I outlined the different ways I had of preserving a bucketful of feral pears I was lucky enough to find. Now, with a good supply of dried fruit and peel and some scrap vinegar, I was tempted to enjoy some fresh pears in an original recipe, one that suited the season and the cool weather. This fruit and nut stuffing is also ideal for those festive dinners where some choose not to eat meat, but is rich enough to appeal to vegetarians and omnivores alike.
To begin with I peeled, cored and chopped the pears and then roasted them in the oven at 350 degrees for about an hour, or until they are a caramel brown and have some crisp edges. Then I chopped them some more.
For the bread I used a home-made sour dough corn bread, but any firm day old bread will work. For the nuts I used pecans, and the dried mushrooms I used porcini, but these can be varied according to what you have on hand or what you prefer.
Roasted Pear and Nut Stuffing
Ingredients
8 cups of cubed bread
1 cup toasted nuts
15 oz dried mushrooms, soaked in 2 cups hot water
1/2 cup oil
one large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 Tbsp fresh sage
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped, roasted pears
Method
Trim the crusts off the bread, cut in cubes and set aside. (The crusts can be ground into bread crumbs and saved for another recipe.)
Toast the nuts in a frying pan briefly until they begin to change colour. This will only take a couple of minutes, so be careful not to scorch them. Chop and set aside.
Pour the boiling water over the dried mushrooms and set aside to cool.
Chop the onion and fry in the oil in a heavy skillet. Once translucent, add the garlic, parsley, sage and salt and pepper. Continue frying for another fi
Drain the mushrooms, saving the liquid, chop them and add to the mixture. Remove from the heat.
Add the nuts, pears and the onion mixture to the bred cubes and combine well. Add the mushroom water and stir again.
Pour into a lightly greased casserole dish and bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour, until it is cooked through.

November 4, 2014 at 6:36 pm
Some more “out of the box” thinking on ways with pears – thanks for sharing this Hilda, I like the sound of it… 🙂
LikeLike
November 6, 2014 at 10:47 pm
Thanks. I just wish I had more of them.
LikeLike
November 4, 2014 at 8:25 pm
I avoid grains so I am going to try substituting butternut squash with this instead of the bread! I think it’ll be a winner!
LikeLike
November 6, 2014 at 10:44 pm
That is a good idea. In that case though I would reduce the amount of liquid, and/or add some thickener, like a nut or Jerusalem artichoke flour or chia seeds since the squash won’t absorb as much liquid. Hope you like it.
LikeLike
November 4, 2014 at 9:47 pm
What a wonderful different stuffing for Xmas x
LikeLike
November 6, 2014 at 10:43 pm
Thanks, Justine. I was thinking it was appropriate for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but is actually easy enough to make any time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
November 7, 2014 at 3:08 pm
true x
LikeLike
November 4, 2014 at 10:38 pm
Stuffing is my love language. I love this unique twist!
LikeLike
November 6, 2014 at 10:48 pm
Thanks Tracy. I started making this kind of stuffing for the vegetarians in the household, and it was so popular, I just decided to dispense with the rest of the meal.
LikeLike
November 5, 2014 at 12:22 am
Looks good Hilda. Love the idea of roasting the pears first. YUM!
LikeLike
November 6, 2014 at 10:50 pm
Thanks Johanne. I thought roasting them would make them less water and sweeter. They were so good, I just at the extra as a snack. After cooling, they became nice and crisp.
LikeLike
November 5, 2014 at 5:24 am
This looks wonderful. I hadn’t thought about roasting pears for a savory dish. What a great idea!
LikeLike
November 9, 2014 at 12:22 pm
Wow Hilda! Very original and looks full flavored! Your posts on feral pears have been enlightening!
LikeLike
November 15, 2014 at 5:51 am
Thanks Gerard.
LikeLike
November 21, 2014 at 3:40 pm
Hi Hilda!
I work for Twin Pines Landscaping, and we are putting together a bunch of our favorite Thanksgiving recipes featuring veggies to share in our “Twin Pines 2014 Thanksgiving Recipes” album on Facebook! With your permission, we’d love to share your picture and link to the recipe here on your blog! Let us know what you think!
Thanks, and Happy Almost Thanksgiving!
Ashley DiFranza and The Twin Pines Landscaping Team
LikeLike
November 21, 2014 at 4:22 pm
Thanks very much. I actually made this recipe with Thanksgiving in mind, so please feel free to use it.
LikeLike
November 21, 2014 at 4:33 pm
Wonderful, thank you so much! Check out our Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/pages/Twin-Pines-Landscaping/503170076416977 to see your recipe and many more like it! Feel free to “Like” the page, and share the post with your friends!
Thanks again, and Happy Thanksgiving!
LikeLike
December 4, 2014 at 9:00 pm
Hi Hilda! We at Twin Pines just wanted to thank you again for contributing to our Twin Pines Thanksgiving Recipe Book (see the final album here http://on.fb.me/1Fk8MLa!) We also wanted to let you know that we’ve posted an article on our blog that ties all these recipes we collected in with landscaping! Check out the final article here http://bit.ly/1FUyBn5 and the ones that link to it! We promise it’s worth a read!
LikeLike
November 22, 2014 at 6:31 pm
This looks delicious! I am a big fan of pears in any form. The decisions to be made on what stuffings to make this year…
LikeLike
December 7, 2014 at 9:33 pm
Yum! I made stuffing in my crock pot at Thanksgiving (no room in the oven) and it tasted good, but was pretty simple. I’d love to try it with pears, nuts and mushrooms. Thanks for another fantastic idea 🙂
LikeLike