The Pear Fruit Is Rich In Dietary
Fiber
Pears come in many varieties. Years ago,
before fresh fruit could always found in stores, and
transportation was not so available, people stored
fruits in cellars to last them over the winter. Apples
and pears were good candidates. The pears for winter
storage were selected for their keeping ability more
than for their taste.
In the fall of the year, it was a real
event to go into the countryside to our favorite
orchards and buy our fruit for the winter. We bought
apples and pears, paying 2$ to $3 for a bushel. Our
fruit cellar was a basement room under an un-heated area
of the house. (This was before the days of central
heating and even city people used a wood or kerosene
fired cooking stove and a coal fired (pipeless) furnace
that was designed to heat the living area of the house.
Our bedrooms were not heated so we piled on the quilts
and blankets. A glass of water beside your bed would be
frozen in the morning.)
The fruit was carefully packed in bins, away from
marauding mice as much as possible. I can still remember
the smell of the fruit cellar with its outside door
laying at an angle over the stairs that led into the
dank, dark dungeon of the cellar. Even in March, there
may be some fruit left, enough to bake a pie.
The reason for this part of the story is to emphasize
that with changing times and resources, the variety of
fruit available has changed. The somewhat bitter and
pulpy pears of my youth have been replaced by the sweet,
fragile, succulent, juicy, and delicious pears that are
available from the States of Washington and Oregon,
where the Japanese Current keeps the climate warn, wet,
and stable.
We buy for our immediate needs and let the producers and
vendors worry about storage. Transportation has made all
the difference. Instead of selecting fruit for its
keeping ability, we have the luxury of shopping for
quality and taste. This is especially true of pears.
With the ability of the growers to select the best
marketable varieties and with the availability of
controlled atmosphere storage, our world enjoys variety
and quality of produce unheard of in former times.
Pears, like similar fruits are rich in dietary fiber,
vitamins and minerals. They are excellent for eating out
of hand and in salads. Did you ever hear of pear cider?
It is delicious.
(R.D.)
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