This recipe pears well with anything

A Pinch of Salt

By Donna Marie Riani

The holiday season is upon us and I can think of no better gift than the gift of food. In my family, food is love. It’s part of all of our gatherings. It’s how we celebrate, how we comfort and how we show we care. This time of year it’s especially true. In many different countries fruit is the gift of choice and that makes perfect sense to me. It’s wholesome, healthy and naturally sweet.

Oregon produces 800 million pears a year. If you do the math, that works out to 300 pears per Oregonian. That’s a lot of pears!  We are second in the country in pear production right behind Washington. Bartlett, Comice and D’Anjou are the main varieties grown here and the Rogue Valley has the ideal conditions to grow them. Pears are one of the few fruits that don’t ripen on the tree. They are picked mature and allowed to ripen under climate-controlled conditions. This is the time of year when many lucky people will receive boxes of pears as gifts but not just any pears, Royal Riviera pears.

I can’t possibly talk about pears and not talk about the wildly successful Oregon-based company Harry & David. Brothers Harry and David Rosenberg both got agricultural degrees and upon graduating, took over their father’s pear farm. The brothers were able to grow a variety of Comice pear called the Royal Riviera. This was quite a feat as the only other place this variety had grown was France. Wouldn’t you know the Royal Rivieras not only grew but thrived in Southern Oregon. They are considered by many to be the Rolls Royce of pears because they are sweeter than the average pear.

If you aren’t the recipient of one of these boxes of pears, have no fear, the supermarkets are loaded with many varieties in beautiful shades of green and red. There is so much you can do with this fruit. It is always welcome on a charcuterie board. It’s lovely sliced and sautéed in butter with a little cardamom and spooned over a scoop of ice cream or mixed into your favorite fruit crisp recipe.You will only be limited by your imagination.

This week's recipe would be a tasty lunch or dinner, especially paired with soup or, as my brother in law likes to say, anything can be breakfast if you put a fried egg on it! Pears and cheese go together beautifully, so this sandwich is pretty much perfect.

Donna Marie Riani is a culinary enthusiast based in Lincoln City offering personal chef services, hands-on classes and demo classes. Contact her at donnariani@hotmail.com

Pear and Gouda Grilled Cheese     

2 slices firm crusty bread, like sourdough

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 tablespoon. Dijon mustard

3 oz. Gouda, thinly sliced or shredded

1 pear, cored and thinly sliced

1/2 small onion or 1 shallot, thinly sliced

Salt and black pepper, to taste

In a medium frying pan melt one tablespoon of butter over medium low heat. Add the onion to the melted butter. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté the onions until browned and softened. This will take about five minutes. Remove the onion from the pan and place in a bowl. Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel to remove any browned butter residue. Set the pan aside while you assemble the sandwich.

In a small bowl, stir to combine one tablespoon of the butter with the Dijon mustard.

Spread the mustard butter mixture on one side of each slice of bread.

On one slice of bread, place the pear slices and the Gouda on top of the butter mustard mixture. Use as much of both as you would like.

On top of the pears and cheese, add the sautéed onions, spreading them evenly.

Place the second piece of bread on top, with the butter mustard mixture facing inside the sandwich.

Take the final tablespoon of butter and spread it on the outside of each slice of bread.

Place the frying pan back over medium low heat. Place the sandwich in the pan. The name of the game here is low and slow. You want the bread to take its time browning. If it browns too fast, the cheese won’t have time to melt. If you feel like the bread is browning too fast just lower the heat a little. Once it is deeply golden brown, flip it over and brown the other side.

When it reaches golden brown perfection, place it on a cutting board and let it sit for a minute. If you slice it hot out of the pan a lot of the cheese will run out. Slice it in half or in quarters and enjoy.