As a vegan and professed lover of fruits and vegetables, there is rarely any sort of produce that I might turn up my nose at- Brussels sprout and beets aside. Funny to think that as a kid, anything green and theoretically edible was the most revolting thing to find on my dinner plate. Yes, I’ve come a long way, because I wouldn’t so much as touch those same harvest gems that I enjoy to no end these days. Of course I still have some reservation when it comes to certain offerings that truly rubbed me the wrong way many years ago, and an unfair bias does still exist against a couple of the most innocuous items found in your standard market, such as pears.
Finding them piled in a heap at the end of the cafeteria’s line up of lackluster dishes, I decided to take a chance and give those otherwise unappetizing fruits another chance. Stealing a few away into my messenger bag, I returned to the privacy of my room to slice into the pale green flesh and see what lay beneath. Small seeds tucked comfortably into the center, like a few small children tucked safely into the covers of their bed, I immediately noticed my attitude towards this edible oddity was quickly shifting to a more positive light. Something about it just seemed so delicate while still remaining strong between my teeth. Unlike the pears of yore, this ripe beauty yielded readily to a firm bite, quickly contrasting from my memory of the rock-solid, stone-like fruits that had been forced upon me. Sweet but in a very modest way, anyone would be hard pressed to say that they didn’t like pears such as this.
Admittedly, these aren’t exactly going to top my list of favorite fruits, as few things could top my affinity for Fuji apples, but I think that pears could at least join the running now.
I love the red, Starksimmon pears, and the brown Bosc pears – I find that they’re the most flavorful, and juicy. I LOVE the cut-opened pear that you created!! :0)
Your pear is very nice! Love the little “seeds.” I’m glad to hear you don’t dislike them as much any more. There are many types to try now that this world has opened up for you! ;) Also, I’m glad to hear you were able to get one in your cafeteria.
I’ve never liked pears and sadly still don’t. It’s their texture. They have fibers like celery but, alone among foods, theirs is in a star shape throughout. I remember looking at a pear slice under a microscope in biology and thinking — that, right there, is why I don’t like pears. Too bad, because I think they look wonderful in all their varieties. Perhaps I should try one of yarn.
Someday I hope you will appreciate brussel sprouts too. For me it was when I learned to prepare them correctly as they can become bitter if overcooked. Remove the outer leaves, trim and cut an ‘x’ in the bottom of the stem, steam for 10 minutes, no more. Yummy.
But I like beets too (baked with a little olive oil and salt, mmm) so maybe we are doomed to like different foods.
Yep, I remember eating many an unripe pear growing up. Now that I am a little more knowledgable about the concept of ripe fruit, I don’t make the same mistake. And while pears are no match in my mind for berries, they are still amazing fruits!
Like your knitted pear too, how cute :-)
I love your pair, especially the pear!!!
I don’t like pears and I have never (until now!) met another person who didn’t like them! I thought I was alone! Perhaps I need to try them again like you have done, give them a “second chance” so to speak …. ?
We had a huge pear tree when I was growing up. My Mom let us eat as many as we wanted(good roughage..lol)
They were (in retrospect) horrid; grainy and hard.
I had a beautiful pear once while in London, we bought two at Harrods
(funny to think of) and ate them outside, dripping juice all over, much to the bemusement of passersbys..lol
They had such a wonderful exotic flavour, like a perfume .
I love the little pear you made!
i hate pear. always have. there’s a pear tree that grows on my farm, and i hate them. i think they look cool. i like the shape of them. i think they’re pretty. but damn do i hate their flavour. they’re all stupid and stuff.
you had a very dramatic pear story to tell here.
i like your crocheted pear.
1. i love pears. wait until they get really ripe, and then give ’em another go. it’ s like an entirely different fruit.
2. you boggle my mind. how do you manage such feats when you’re living in a college dorm? i NEVER could’ve pulled that off when i was in school.
xo
kittee
I can just imagine a whole bowl of those beautiful crocheted pears on my coffee table.
Fuji apple RULE MY WORLD. I eat one just about daily & obsess over them at the store, looking for the deep red variety. I’ve been getting in to pears a bit & even asian pears, although most of the time they end up in sorbet.