Plums and Pears: Vegetables and Fruits for Health

Both plums and pears have grown in North America for centuries. However, pears grown by European settlers were subject to a disease called fire blight. Although hybrid varieties have been developed that are resistant to the disease, pears are still not grown in great numbers in Maine.

Most of the pear crop is grown in the California and the Northwest states. Some comes from Michigan, New York and Colorado. Plums also were grown by the colonists, but today most of the crop found in local markets is from the Northwest, California and Michigan.

Plums and pears can provide nutrients to round out your daily needs. A serving is a whole plum or pear or, for cooked plums or pears, 1/2 cup. These fruits are not high sources of nutrients, but can promote total nutrition and add variety to meals and snacks. Plums and pears are low calorie, low in fat and a source of vitamin C, iron and calcium. They add significantly to a healthy diet.

There are four popular varieties of pears available: “Bartletts” in the summer, and “Anjou,” “Bosc” and “Comice” in the fall and winter. Each has distinctive characteristics. “Bartletts” are large and juicy, are used for canning, and are golden yellow when ripe. Sometimes, they have a rosy blush color. Anjou pears are most available in the winter and the least expensive. They are oval-shaped and have a yellow-green skin. They may taste blander than other pear varieties. “Bosc” is noted for a long, tapered neck and the reddish brown color. This pear is good for cooking or baking because of its firm flesh. “Comice” is sweet and flavorful and is sometimes known as “the dessert pear.”

Many varieties of plums are available: large red and purple plums; large yellow plums; “Gages” (juicy dessert fruits); “Damson” (varieties that are firm and tart, and are used in preserves or jellies); and prune-type plums, sweet types that dry well. Select plums that are fully colored for their variety, plump and have firm flesh. Don't buy fruit that is mushy, has cracked skin or is shriveled.

Pears are harvested from the orchard when they are fully grown, but still green and firm. Pears are ripened as they travel to market and at home. As the fruit ripens, it will become juicer and sweeter. If you buy pears green, you can store them in the refrigerator to slow ripening. A couple of days before use, remove from the refrigerator. Fruit ripens faster in a paper bag or perforated plastic bag. Never store or ripen pears in a sealed plastic bag. The fruit will turn brown in the center and not be good eating.

Buy firm plums and let them ripen at home. This fruit will not get sweeter as it softens, but it will get juicier. When the flesh is slightly soft at the stem end and tip, the fruit is ready to eat. Ripe plums will keep in the refrigerator for four or five days.

As with all fruit that you eat without peeling, wash plums and pears before eating. They will be the sweetest and juiciest when you eat them at room temperature. Eaten at the peak of ripeness, the pear is sweet and succulent. Under ripe or over ripe, the fruit will be less satisfactory.

Pears can be cooked by baking, sautéing or poaching. “Bartletts” and “Boscs” hold their shape well when cooked. Spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg or allspice make warm pears especially tasty. Pears sautéed in a sweetened fruit juice, such as orange juice, makes a nice topping for frozen yogurt or plain yogurt.

Plums are especially colorful and can make an attractive salad. Or they can be made into a puree and added to desserts, such as cakes, custards or frozen desserts. They can also be baked or poached.

Pears with Yogurt Sauce

Serves 4.

1 3/4 cups water
1/2 cup honey
2 cinnamon sticks, 3-inches long
4 medium pears, peeled, cored and cut in half lengthwise
8 ounces low-fat vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons low-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Make the yogurt sauce ahead. Combine vanilla yogurt and the next three ingredients in a bowl, stir well. Cover and chill.

Cook pears by combining water and honey in a large, non-stick pan. Add cinnamon sticks. Arrange pear halves, cut sides down, in a single layer, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for 10 minutes, or until tender, basting and turning them frequently for an even color. Remove pears from pan and put in a dessert serving dish. Set aside. Boil down the cooking liquid to 1/2 cup, remove cinnamon sticks. Pour liquid over pears.

To serve, put 2 pear halves on a dessert plate, and top with 2 tablespoons yogurt sauce.

Nutritional content per serving:
264 calories
66 g carbohydrates
2 g protein
1.5 g fat
4 g of fiber
74 milligrams calcium

For more information, contact your University of Maine Cooperative Extension county office.

Published and distributed in furtherance of Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914, by the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Land Grant University of the state of Maine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Cooperative Extension and other agencies of the U.S.D.A. provide equal opportunities in programs and employment.

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Last Modified: 08/12/08
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