My mother and I canned one batch of pears and then my cousin came a couple days later to put up a batch for her family. (Notes for myself to remember how to do this!)
The differently-shaped pear tree.
The pears were picked while they were still green and stored in the root house. Then one night, about a week later, they suddenly turned yellow and were just right for preserving (still firm, not soft).
A selection of the best.
Pears quartered, peeled, cored, and soaking in salt water.
Seven carefully packed jars. Make sure the curved side of the pear pieces is facing up (easier to accomplish in wide-mouth jars; otherwise, fish around with a fork in narrow-mouth jars to turn the pears, if necessary).
Start the canner water heating (don't fill it full yet); boil the lids; heat the sugar water/syrup mixture; heat water in the tea kettle to add to the canner later.
Add the sugar water to the jars, a "light" syrup of 1 cup sugar to 3 cups water. For seven quarts, 3 cups sugar and 9 cups water was more than sufficient. Fill to about one-quarter inch from the top making sure the pears are covered. Also, add one teaspoon of lemon juice to each jar. Then wipe the rim clean, place the sterilized lid on the jar, and screw on a band as tightly as possible.
Place jars in canner.
Fill canner with water so that it covers the jars. Bring to a rolling boil and boil for 25 minutes.
Carefully remove the jars from the canner using a jar lifter and place away from drafts to cool.
Listen for the "pinging" sound of the lids sealing. (My mother used to can on this electric side of this wonderful old stove until it shorted last summer after a canner boiled over and the water rusted through the old wires sometime later causing a fire to start. Fortunately, my parents were home and were able to unplug the stove and put out the fire.)
After the jars are cooled and sealed, remove the bands and store for the winter!
