Common Pear, European Pear 'Buerre Bosc'

Brown-russetted, long, skinny on the stem end. First time I had this I was unimpressed - a hard pear without much sweetness or flavor. An...Read Moreother time I thought I'd give it another try, and this time I had a perfectly ripe one - delicious! One way to test ripeness in European pears (as opposed to Asian pears which are usually ripened on the tree,) is to press a finger onto the fruit just beside the stem; if it gives to a little pressure then it is ready to eat. They're usually not ripe from the store, so set on the counter what you'll want to eat in the upcoming week (or couple days if your house is very warm). The rest go in the fridge in a perforated plastic bag - same storage as apples. To accelerate ripening on the countertop, you can place pears in a paper bag with a ripe banana or apple, and they'll ripen faster - just be sure to not leave them too long - mushy pears aren't too good!