This pear butter recipe combines sweet pears, warm vanilla, and a touch of brown sugar for a rich, smooth, and perfectly spreadable slow cooker condiment.
For most of my adult life, I never gave fruit butters much thought.
Honestly, I once assumed it contained butter (if you could see me now, I'd be blushing). That changed about 20 years ago when a colleague introduced me to the wonderful world of fruit butters - and I've been hooked ever since.
I first shared this pear butter recipe back in 2016, and it's been a fall favorite ever since. Made in the slow cooker with ripe pears, vanilla, and a touch of brown sugar, it's an easy, hands-off way to enjoy the season's flavors.
Over the years, I've also shared a spiced apple butter and a plum butter recipe, but this one remains closest to my heart - mainly because it originally featured pears from a tree my dad planted in our backyard.
If you're wondering how to preserve a bounty of pears, this crock pot pear butter recipe is the perfect solution.
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Quick Overview
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 4-6 hours (includes both cooking stages; exact time depends on the variety and ripeness of the pears)
- Total Time: 4½-6½ hours
- Yield: About 2 cups (approximately 2 half-pint jars)
- Serving Suggestions: Spread this silky pear butter on toast, pancakes, or scones. It's also wonderful stirred into yogurt, ricotta, or spooned over oatmeal for a cozy fall breakfast.
Ingredients You'll Need
- Ripe pears: Sweet and juicy, peeled, cored, and cut into pieces
- Water: Just enough to help the pears cook down smoothly
- Vanilla bean: Split and scrape to release those aromatic seeds
- Brown sugar: Just a touch for sweetness and depth of flavor
- Freshly squeezed orange juice: Adds bright, subtle citrus notes
- Orange peel strips: For a gentle, fragrant orange essence
- Pinch of salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances flavor
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Peel, core, and cut 2½-3 pounds (1.1-1.4 kg) of ripe pears into pieces. Split and scrape ½ vanilla bean, prepare 1-2 strips of orange peel, and squeeze 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of fresh orange juice.
- Combine the pears, ⅓ cup (80 ml) water, vanilla seeds and pod, orange juice, orange peel strips, 1-2 tablespoons (15-30 g) brown sugar, and a pinch of salt. Give it a gentle stir to mix everything together.
- Cook on high for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally. The pears should become soft and tender by the end of this stage.
- Remove the vanilla bean and orange peel strips. Your kitchen will smell amazing at this point!
- Use a handheld immersion blender directly in the slow cooker, or transfer to a food processor, to blend until smooth. Return to the slow cooker.
- Cook on low with the lid removed for 1-2 hours. Cook until most of the remaining liquid has evaporated and the pear butter has reached your desired thick, silky consistency. Stir frequently to prevent sticking.
- Ladle the pear butter into clean jars. Let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for up to 3 weeks or freeze for longer storage.
How to Use Pear Butter
This pear butter is as versatile as it is delicious. Whether you enjoy it for breakfast, dessert, or as a little something extra on your cheese board, here are a few of my favorite ways to use it:
- Spread it on toast, muffins, breakfast buns, bagels, French toast, buttermilk waffles, or pancakes.
- Swirl a spoonful into yogurt, oatmeal, cottage cheese, or even ricotta.
- Use it as a topping for ice cream or a layered fruit parfait.
- It also makes a wonderful sandwich spread-especially paired with cheese.
Tips
- Use ripe, naturally sweet varieties like Bartlett or Bosc for the best flavor and smooth texture. Avoid overly firm pears, as they won't break down as easily.
- If your pears are very ripe, start with 1 tablespoon of brown sugar and adjust to taste once the butter thickens.
- The longer it simmers, the thicker and richer the pear butter becomes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Place a small spoonful on a plate. If no liquid seeps out after a minute, it's ready.
- To freeze the pear butter: Allow the pear butter to cool to room temperature; place in containers which are freezer safe (always leave about 1-inch headspace) and freeze. They will keep for about 6 months in the freezer. Once thawed and opened, they should be stored in the refrigerator.
FAQ
A fruit butter is a highly concentrated form of pureed fruit (apple, pear, plum, etc…). It has a smooth consistency and silky texture, which can easily be spread, like butter. Spices are often used to highlight the fruity taste, and they are usually made without any pectin.
Fruit butter is made by chopping fruit into chunks and cooking it so that it softens. It is then pureed and cooked again until all the moisture evaporates, transforming into a smooth, silky fruit spread. Fruit butter can easily be made in a slow cooker.
It is optional, but removing the peel ensures a silky texture, especially since the pear skins can remain slightly fibrous even after blending.
Fresh pears give the best flavor and consistency, but frozen pears can work in a pinch. Just thaw and drain them well before cooking. Avoid canned pears since they're often packed in syrup and too sweet for this recipe.
Stored in the refrigerator, homemade pear butter keeps for up to 3 weeks. For longer storage, you can freeze it in small jars or containers for up to 6 months.
Absolutely! You can omit the orange for a pure pear flavor, or experiment with a pinch of ground ginger or cardamom. Just keep the additions subtle so the pears remain the star.
Homemade Fruit Condiments to Try
Explore more of my favorite homemade fruit condiments - each one is easy to make and perfect for preserving seasonal fruit.
Recipe Origins
My daughter-in-law and daughter share my obsession with fruit butters, so naturally, they became my taste testers for this recipe. After a few rounds of testing, we agreed that the delicate flavor of pears really shines when paired with vanilla beans and just a hint of orange.
We did experiment with warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice-each added depth but overpowered the gentle sweetness of the pears, even in small amounts. We also tried lemon with vanilla and then orange with vanilla, and the orange version won us all over.
This homemade pear butter was inspired by a recipe found on this site.
To this day, it still remains one of my favorite ways to preserve an abundance of pears. It also makes a thoughtful hostess gift during the fall season.
Enjoy!
THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community, where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.
Ciao for now,
Maria
★★★★★ If you have made this Pear Butter recipe, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!
Recipe
Crock Pot Pear Butter Recipe
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Ingredients
- 2½-3 pounds ripe pears peeled, cored and cut into pieces, 1.1-1.4 kg
- ⅓ cup water 80 mL
- ½ vanilla bean split lengthwise and scraped to release seeds
- 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar 15-30 grams
- 2 tablespoons orange juice freshly squeezed, 30 mL
- 1-2 strips of orange peel
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on the high setting for about 3-4 hours (Total time will vary based on ripeness of pear).
- Stir occasionally.
- When the pears have softened, remove the vanilla bean and the orange zest.
- With a handheld immersion blender, process the pears until smooth. Alternatively, the cooked pears can be transferred to a food processor, pureed and transferred back to the slow cooker.
- Cook on low with the lid removed for 1-2 hours. Cook until most of the remaining liquid has evaporated and the pear butter has reached your desired thick, silky consistency. Stir frequently to prevent sticking.
- The total time will depend on the fruit's moisture content. The pear butter is done when no liquid seeps out when a teaspoon of the butter is placed on a dish.
- Ladle the pear butter into clean jars. Let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for up to 3 weeks or freeze for longer storage.
Video
Notes
- Use ripe, naturally sweet varieties like Bartlett or Bosc for the best flavor and smooth texture. Avoid overly firm pears, as they won't break down as easily.
- If your pears are very ripe, start with 1 tablespoon of brown sugar and adjust to taste once the butter thickens.
- The longer it simmers, the thicker and richer the pear butter becomes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Place a small spoonful on a plate. If no liquid seeps out after a minute, it's ready.
- To freeze the pear butter: Allow the pear butter to cool to room temperature, then place it in freezer-safe containers (always leave about 1-inch headspace) and freeze. They will keep for about 6 months in the freezer. Once thawed and opened, they should be stored in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on September 18, 2016, and republished on September 26, 2018, and again on October 31, 2025, with updated content and photos.
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Peg
Hi everyone! Thank you Maria for the recipe. I’m planning on trying it but was wondering, is it okay to double the recipe? Would that increase the cooking time? I have a lot of pears to use up!
Maria
Thanks for your interest Peg. Lucky you! You can definitely process more pears but you may have to make some adjustments to the amount of brown sugar, orange peel and vanilla… not necessarily double the amount. Yes, the overall cooking time may be longer depending on the type of pears you use. You can always remove the cover of your slow cooker in order for the extra moisture to evaporate. Have fun!
Lori Jones
Can I double or triple this recipe in my crock pot? I have so many pears and would love to make lots of this recipe!
Maria
Thanks for your interest Lori. You can definitely process more pears but you may have to make some adjustments to the amount of brown sugar, orange peel and vanilla… not necessarily double the amount. Yes, the overall cooking time may be longer depending on the type of pears you use. You can always remove the cover of your slow cooker in order for the extra moisture to evaporate more quickly. Have fun!
Kelly
Can this recipe be doubled?
Maria
Thanks for your interest Kelly. You can definitely process more pears but you may have to make some adjustments to the amount of brown sugar, orange peel and vanilla… not necessarily double the amount. Yes, the overall cooking time may be longer depending on the type of pears you use. You can always remove the cover of your slow cooker in order for the extra moisture to evaporate. Have fun!
Becky
What do you do if many (16) hours of cooking your pear butter is like soup?
Maria
Oh, I’m sorry to hear this… I would remove the cover… this will allow the extra liquid to evaporate.
SB
I made this with a combination of Bartlett, Bosch and Asian pears. Loved the hint of orange! The amount of sugar was perfect and I added a bit of cardamom. Cooking time and consistency was spot on. Definitely adding this to my Fall harvest recipes!
Maria
How wonderful SB! Thanks so much for sharing.
kalani
Hi there! Wondering how much cardamom you used? Fresh or a pod? Thanks! I am *so* thrilled about how little sugar there is in this recipe. 🙂
Chip Lucas
I have made this recipe about a half dozen times now and have adjusted slightly. I do not have the real vanilla beans so just using real flavoring. I have made it in two different crock pots and one tends to cook the pears darker than the other. I have done a combination of the canning in a water bath and freezing. I am glad that I have found this recipe and can preserve the pears which are still falling and I am still making. We will have many gifts for the upcoming holiday seasons.
Maria
Such thoughtful gifts Chip! Thanks so much for sharing… you must have a beautiful pear tree! Enjoy!
Stephanie
Hi! I need help 😅
I made this twice: everything seems to be going well through the immersion blender stage. The first time, I added only one table spoon of water. The liquid was incorporated at 2 hours, but the butter was scorched. The second time I added about 1/4th cup of water. After two hours, it had carmelized and was getting a burnt flavor but the liquid wasnt nearly absorbed. This happened on my low setting. Is my crock pot to hot? Less time?
Maria
I’m sorry to hear you are having problems with the recipe Stephanie. By the sounds of it, I would say less time. Just wondering did you have the cover on?
Stephanie
I did, I’m going to try it again in a different crock pot and keep a close eye on it!
Maria
Great! Thanks Stephanie!
Patti E
I had to watch mine carefully and turn off the slow cooker a couple of times. I have a Crockpot brand one that tends to run very hot so even on low it has burned a few recipes. I ended up finishing the last couple of hours on the Keep Warm setting, with the lid off. I lost a tiny bit to scorching on the upper sides, possibly due to missing a few stirs. But I have 3 precious little jars cooling now. And the taste and smell is heavenly!
Therese
This was a perfect recipe for my batch of pears :). I canned most of it and kept one for the fridge and one in the freezer for easy quick fall access. Thank you
Maria
How wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing Therese. Enjoy!
Sue
Cardarmom! That’s the spice you were looking for. Pears and cardamom are great friends.
I used only 1/8 tsp, but it gave the pear butter a lovely, subtle dimension.
I did not use vanilla in my cardamom test batch. I didn’t have vanilla beans and didn’t want to add vanilla extract due to the water/alcohol. When I get the beans I will try the vanilla/cardamom combo.
But with just the orange and the cardamom, I thought the pear butter was out-of-this-world luscious. Thank you for sharing such a simple but amazing recipe!
Maria
Fantastic Sue! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment, appreciate it!
Catherine Boyer
Very easy to make. Tastes yummy. Tiny batch but I’ll make it again. Soo many pears.
Maria
Thanks for taking the time to share Catherine! Glad you enjoyed the pear butter.
Jill Wyatt
Are there adjustments to make if I double?
Maria
Thanks for your interest Jill. You can definitely process more pears but you may have to make some adjustments to the amount of brown sugar, orange peel and vanilla… not necessarily double the amount. Yes, the overall cooking time may be longer depending on the type of pears you use. You can always remove the cover of your slow cooker in order for the extra moisture to evaporate. Have fun!