Cooking with Canned Food: Pears

How often do you consider canned produce as a go-to ingredient for cooking meals at home? If you’re like most people, it probably doesn’t happen often. This recipe series is intended to showcase the versatility, great taste, and convenience of canned food. Today’s featured ingredient: canned pears!

This week you may have heard the Environmental Working Group released it’s annual list of the Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen. This is a list I like to dislike (I won’t say hate) for a number of reasons, but one of them is because we know it’s contributed to lower consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Say what?!!

Yes, although the intent is to inform shoppers, it inadvertently contributes to mistrust or fear around food. Many shoppers are constrained by their budget (I’ll raise my hand here because I’m one of them). And organic produce is generally more expensive than conventionally grown counterparts. There’s a lot of shoppers who are hesitant to buy conventional fruits and veggies, but can’t afford organic or don’t want to pay the premium, that they end up going without any fruits and veggies. At the very least, it can impact the variety of produce in a household or reduce how often fresh fruits and veggies are purchased and served.

[Tweet “Confused about the Dirty Dozen? Check out my thoughts here, plus a new recipe”]

If you wan’t to read up on some of the other reasons I disagree with the Dirty Dozen, Kevin Folta has a nice explanation HERE. He’s a researcher at the University of Florida and one of the many voices I trust when I have questions about biotech, plant science, or modern agriculture.

So anyways, the recipe I’m sharing today highlights one of many ways to incorporate fruits and veggies into a meal without blowing your budget. I grew up enjoying canned fruit at family meals but I rarely use it now. I don’t really have a good reason…I guess I just started to prefer fresh and frozen and opted for that when I had the choice.

The original version of this recipe was developed for a contest with the Pacific Northwest Canned Pear Alliance to develop recipes for foodservice kitchens. Obviously we’re cooking on a much smaller scale at home so I made some adjustments and tweaked some ingredients and here we are!

I’m a big fan of grain based salads, as you might already know. I’ve used freekeh and sorghum and quinoa and orzo….you get it. Although pearled couscous is closer to a pasta than a grain, it still fits right in! I just love the chewy texture and how it’s easy to mix it throughout so you get a little taste of everything in each bite. I was using some pretty strong flavors with dried cherries and gorgonzola so I kept the dressing really simple. Just two ingredients, olive oil and my favorite balsamic vinegar, and that’s it!

[Tweet “Check out the newest addition to my grain-based salad collection: Couscous with Pears and Gorgonzola!”]

And of course the canned pears are fun to use in something like a grain based salad because it leans towards the savory side – not what you might expect with something as sweet as pears.

In addition to the Dirty Dozen contributing to fear around food, it also plays into the belief that produce has to be expensive to be high quality or nutritious. And I just cannot get on board with that. I don’t think cost is always reflective of what you get when it comes to food. For that reason I won’t say I’ll never buy organic….I just won’t buy it if it’s more expensive, not as fresh, or has a lower quality than the cheaper conventional version sitting right next to it. Reverse that and I’d opt for the organic version.

And it would be nice if we could access great tasting, ripe produce year round but the reality is that produce is seasonal. Canned fruit can fill the gaps in the calendar when the fresh version is either too expensive for our liking or not looking its best. Here’s the cost breakdown of what I got when I shopped for this recipe:

NOTE: I didn’t include the pantry staples such as salt, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar because these items are often purchased with the intent of using them for multiple recipes, and the cost breakdown is often cents vs. dollars. Couscous purchased in bulk or swapping for another type of cheese would reduce cost. 

The key to this recipe is being careful not to completely crush these pears. They’re on the softer side and the cheese and spinach is fragile too. So I gently folded all ingredients together until things were evenly combined and left it at that. Another key is to let the couscous cool *almost* to room temperature before mixing everything together – I didn’t want to completely melt the cheese or wilt the spinach. We enjoyed leftovers straight out of the fridge (although I did try one bowl zapped in the microwave just to see what would happen…as you might guess the cheese melted and it was pretty much amazing).

So here’s the full recipe for your viewing pleasure. Check it out and make it your own and serve it up with some protein if you want to turn it into a full meal!

Couscous with Pears and Gorgonzola

5 from 3 votes

Pears and gorgonzola are a rich flavor pairing, which makes it perfect for the mild flavor or couscous. This easy recipe uses canned pears, but if you have some that are fresh in seasons, feel free to substitute for fresh!

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

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Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup pearled couscous
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 1/2 cups spinach, fresh, about 4 oz.
• 1 can Bartlett pear halves ((15 oz. can), drained
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup gorgonzola cheese crumbles
• 3/4 cup dried cherries

Instructions

• Bring 1 1/2 cups water and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a boil over high heat. Add dried couscous once water is boiling and reduce heat to medium. Simmer, uncovered, for 6 to 8 minutes or until most liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and allow to stand, uncovered, to cool as you prepare the other ingredients.
• Combine the olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a small measuring cup and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• Roughly chop or chiffonade the fresh spinach into thin strips. Add to a mixing bowl, along with the dried cherries and chopped walnuts. Carefully dice the drained pears into 1/2" cubes and add to the mixing bowl.
• Once couscous has cooled enough to stop releasing steam, add to the mixing bowl and gently fold ingredients together. Drizzle the balsamic dressing over the top and add the gorgonzola cheese crumbles. Gently fold ingredients together to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Notes

Walnuts may be replaced with pecans or toasted pine nuts if desired.

To create an entree, add your favorite protein such as: grilled chicken, pork tenderloin, or ground turkey.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 serving, Calories: 465 kcal, Carbohydrates: 38 g, Protein: 12 g, Fat: 30 g, Saturated Fat: 6 g, Cholesterol: 14 mg, Sodium: 384 mg, Potassium: 287 mg, Fiber: 5 g, Sugar: 10 g, Vitamin A: 2323 IU, Vitamin C: 5 mg, Calcium: 160 mg, Iron: 2 mg

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Couscous, Pear

What do you look for when you shop for fruits and veggies? Do you have a favorite recipe that uses canned fruit?

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