From late August and through the month of September, in Sicily you can find delicious seckel pears. Seckels are tiny pears, with a chubby round body, small neck, and short stem. Their peel is olive green, and frequently exhibits a red blush.
The best varieties are grown on the Etna and they are Coscia, Spineddi and Mputiri.
However, a similar variety of seckel pear can be also found in Malta. There it has a even smaller size and it is mostly known as Bambinella.
I used the Coscia variety to make this jam. I also added fresh ginger to give the jam a nice spicy note.
This jam would also taste delicious on some nice cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 kgseckel pears
- 300 glight muscovado brown sugar
- 45 gfresh ginger
- 1lemon
Preparation
– peel the pears, remove the stems and the internal seeds;
– chop the pears into small cubes;
– transfer them into a large pot with high sides;
– add the sugar and the juice of the lemon
– peel the ginger and grate it onto the fruit;
– mix well, then put the pot on the stove and set the heat to medium;
– bring to boil;
– set the heat to medium/low and continue cooking for at least 20 minutes;
– blend everything with a blender, then cook for another 2 minutes on low heat;
– remove the pot from the stove and pour the jam into sterilized jars;
– close the lids and put the jars upside down;
– don’t touch the jars until they will be completely cold;
– after, to verify if the jars sealed well, press on the lid: it should not click;
– sealed jars can be stored up till 6 months
