Roasted pears are a glorious thing, allowing you to savor a pear’s sweet subtle perfection without necessarily waiting for that ideal moment of ripeness.

Here are easy basic instructions on how to roast pears, followed by a few ideas for simple salads and other recipes that highlight these roasted fruit perfectly.

How to Roast a Pear

• Cut a pear into 4 lengthwise quarters, coring to remove the seeds (but you can keep the stem atop one or more of the quarters, as it looks very attractive in the finished product). Repeat with as many pears as you'd like to roast!
  
• Heat the heaviest fry pan or skillet you have over medium high, and when hot, add in a Tbls or so of butter. (More pears, means more butter is needed, obviously...)
  
• Let the butter melt and then add in your pears flat against the hot pan.
• Let the pears fry for 3 or 4 minutes and then flip over onto the other flat side, and repeat.
• The pears are done when they are browned slightly and softened throughout.

Make these with pears straight from the market – no more waiting and watching for an eternity for pears to soften on the countertop! Once roasted, you have something that goes well with any number of dishes

Roasted Pear Ideas

• Serve on pancakes with real maple syrup and toasted walnuts
• Serve with a salad of bitter greens, nuts, vinaigrette and a tart cheese. Cheese that go classically well with roasted pears in a salad include: gorgonzola, old cheddar, stilton, parmesan, Roquefort and pecorino, amongst others! An easy late summer lunch of roasted pears, toasted walnuts, a balsamic vinaigrette and shavings of real parmesan cheese, served with some good artisan bread – pretty close to as good as it gets!
• Roasted pear and brie quesadillas
• Roasted pears on vanilla ice cream with honey and walnuts
• A sourdough sandwich with thick cut bacon, butter, arugula lettuce and roasted pears
• A bagel with cream cheese, bacon and roasted pears
• Pork chops in a balsamic glaze (or a citrus glaze – something tart, anyway) and roasted pears
• Sweet potato and roasted pear soup (a pureed soup) you could also use butternut squash, apples, in any combination. Try using a scant pinch of allspice for the flavoring
• Served as a dessert with good dark chocolate and a glass of tawny or ruby port

Just a few ideas to get you started. So get out to your local farmers market and pick up some in-season pears, roast them up and then get creative, using them to compliment any number of dishes.