Slow Cooker Vanilla Caramel Pear Butter
Posted on 04 October 2013
It’s October, the best month of the year! That means it’s slow cooker month!
J’adore the slow cooker. Frankly, I’m not sure why I don’t use it more often. Typical recipes made in the slow cooker are perfect when it’s chilly outside, but it’s also practical when it’s oppressively hot since cooking doesn’t heat up the kitchen.
But you know that I am a little crazy (cray-cray, if you will) for using the slow cooker to make fruit butters. Having been burned a lot by burbling fruit butters on the stove, I am willing — nay, eager — to endure the lengthy burn-free cooking times of slow-cooker fruit butters.
Last year for Can It Up, October brought what is possibly the most popular AFB recipe of all-time: Slow Cooker Vanilla Rum Apple Butter. This year, I adapted a different recipe for pears.
Have you ever heard of Warren pears? I hadn’t until this past weekend, but they may now be my favorite fall fruit. They are smooth, sweet, and buttery, unlike the gritty supermarket pears with which I was raised. Although I used uglies for this recipe (because you know I like a good deal), the bulk ended up being Warrens.
As the pear butter cooked down, Matt (a.k.a. Mr. Taste Tester) inquired what type of alcohol was included. The answer? None. The brown sugar caramelizes, thereby lending the pear butter a lightly toasted flavor with rummy overtones — but rum-free.
That means this preserve is perfect to share with your friends and family with children or those who otherwise appreciate booziness without the actual booze. Hooray!
What is your favorite fall fruit?
Last year: Slow Cooker Triple Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients
Instructions
Adapted from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving
70 responses to Slow Cooker Vanilla Caramel Pear Butter
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This looks amazing! Have you ever made anything infused with Maple Syrup?
V, I am considering making either pear or apple butter with maple syrup. Bring me some good syrup back from the east coast!
Cool! That’s why I was asking! Hehe I’ve been getting my fair share of Maple Walnut ice cream lately :).
V, Matt loves maple syrup so anything I don’t use will definitely be appreciated by him.
This recipe looks AMAZING!! Do you know about how many pears or cups of pears 7 lbs are? My mom has a pear tree and she gave me a lot but I’m not sure how many pounds I have…..Thanks!!
Colleen, I don’t know so I turned to my trusty friend, Google. Per http://southernfood.about.com/library/info/blequivp.htm, one pound of fresh pears is 2 cups sliced or cooked. Let me know how it turns out!
thanks!!
i made it and it is DELICIOUS!!! i had some on toast this morning….yums!!
Colleen, so glad that you liked it! So tempted to get more pears and make even more!
I made this yesterday. It is off the charts a-ma-zing!!!
Jessica, glad to hear it! You may inspire me to make some more before pears go out of season.
[…] an unconventional slow cooker recipe – they can do a lot more than just stews and chili! Try vanilla caramel pear butter, french toast, or even gluten free orange-date […]
I typically make apple and pear butters with little or no sugar for health reasons. I use the peels for the pectin – organic only so no pesticides – and it will set just fine. I would like to use the brown sugar for the caramel taste but would I get that if I cut it down to, say, 2 cups only?
Lyn, I’m not sure since I haven’t tested the recipe using less sugar. My suggestion is to give it a try — and let me know how it goes!
This post is SO well timed, as I toted home a bushel of bartlett pears this weekend and was looking for different recipes to use them up!
I’ll link back to this post when I get around to writing my own!
Tasha, yay! Let me know how it turns out.
I have been looking at Pear Butter recipes for two days and chose this one. I am making it now and cannot WAIT for it to finish cooking. It’s going to be hard to wait for 8 hours though!
Amanda, what makes it even worse is how delicious your kitchen will smell as it’s cooking. Enjoy!
There is an unknown species of pear trees on our farm that was there in 1945 when my folks bought the property. There is only 1 tree left but it produced so many this year the limbs up high broke out. I’ve canned over 60 quarts, we ate all we could hold, my sister gave a bunch to her friends, and I still have about 3 bushel to process. They are going bad quickly now so think I will use this recipe for the pieces I can salvage. It sounds much better than what is in my canning book. Thanks 4 burners, and everyone else, who says it is delicious.!!!
Shirley, wow, your canning record this year is exceptional! Enjoy the pear butter!
Hi!
What temperature/setting should the crock pot be set on while it cooks for the 8 hours? I’m new to the crock pot world 🙂 Thanks! I can’t wait to make this!!