flipPears Tapped with Honey
Pears Tapped with Honey
Why this dish? In the orchards of Lorraine, pears and apples were dried to last through winter and to fill travelers' pouches. This preserved sweetness evokes Joan's native Lorraine, where dried fruits sweetened the year without waste.
Pears flattened ('tapped') then slowly dried, rehydrated in a light syrup of honey and spices. Concentrated and sweet, they keep for months: the peasant treat that travels and defies winter.
At home in Domrémy, we wasted nothing the orchard gave. The pears, we tapped them flat, set them to dry by the hearth all winter long. When scarcity came or we had to take the road, a handful in the pouch was enough to comfort, sweet as honey. Make a store of them, and you will always have a bit of summer in reserve when the cold bites.
- •Firm pears — as many as you have (fruit to dry)
- •Honey — a little (sweeten the syrup)
- •Cinnamon, ginger — a pinch (flavor)
Pears Tapped with Honey
Pears flattened ('tapped') then slowly dried, rehydrated in a light syrup of honey and spices. Concentrated and sweet, they keep for months: the peasant treat that travels and defies winter.
Why this dish? In the orchards of Lorraine, pears and apples were dried to last through winter and to fill travelers' pouches. This preserved sweetness evokes Joan's native Lorraine, where dried fruits sweetened the year without waste.
At home in Domrémy, we wasted nothing the orchard gave. The pears, we tapped them flat, set them to dry by the hearth all winter long. When scarcity came or we had to take the road, a handful in the pouch was enough to comfort, sweet as honey. Make a store of them, and you will always have a bit of summer in reserve when the cold bites.
Ingredients (period version)
- Firm pears — as many as you have (fruit to dry)
- Honey — a little (sweeten the syrup)
- Cinnamon, ginger — a pinch (flavor)
Ingredients
- Firm pears (e.g., Conference) — 6 (fruit)
- Honey — 3 tbsp (syrup)
- Water — 25 cl (syrup)
- Cinnamon — 1/2 stick (spice)
- Fresh ginger — 2 thin slices (spice)
Method
- Peel the pears, cut them in half, remove the core, and flatten them slightly with the palm of your hand.
- Dry them in a very low oven (80–90 °C) for 3 to 4 hours on a rack, until they are pliable and concentrated (or use a dehydrator).
- Prepare a light syrup: water, honey, cinnamon, and ginger, simmer for 5 minutes.
- Plunge the dried pears into the hot syrup and let them soak for 10 minutes.
- Drain and store dry in a cloth or jar; serve as is at the end of a meal or take them on a journey.
How it was made : Drying fruits—'tapped' pears, apples, plums—was the great medieval preservation technique, in the absence of refined sugar. They were dried in the baker's cooling oven or by the hearth. This is an evocation of fruit-growing Lorraine: we do not know the exact menu of Joan's household, but such provisions were a matter of course.
The contemporary twist : Half-dip them in a drizzle of chocolate... no, let's stay in 1429: roll them instead in a veil of cinnamon and present them as 'golden medals', a wink to the gold of the standard.
Sources : Le Ménagier de Paris, c. 1393 (conservation des fruits) · Bruno Laurioux, Manger au Moyen Âge, Hachette, 2002
Joan of Arc · Charactorium
