Famous Last Meals / Modern companion recipe

Plain Yogurt with Warm Cinnamon Pears

Name: Plain Yogurt with Warm Cinnamon Pears
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 2 dessert bowls, each with half the cooked pear and ½ cup/120 g plain yogurt
Ingredients: 2 medium firm-ripe pears, washed, then peeled and cored to give 10½ oz/300 g prepared flesh; 2 tablespoons drinking water (30 ml), plus up to 1 tablespoon (15 ml) only if the pan starts to dry; 2 teaspoons lemon juice (10 ml), seeds removed; ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon (0.5 g); 2 teaspoons honey (14 g); 1 cup plain pasteurized unsweetened yogurt (240 g), refrigerated at 40°F/4°C or below

Plain yogurt is the documented food connection; pear, cinnamon, honey and this saucepan method are entirely new choices for a home dessert. Let the fruit lose its fierce heat before it meets the cold yogurt. This is not Smith’s reported plain-yogurt serving.

2 dessert bowls, each with half the cooked pear and ½ cup/120 g plain yogurtActive 15 minCooking 20 minTotal 45 min

Read James Edward Smith: Yogurt, Two Years After a Stay →

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Two small plain shallow bowls, each with a clearly visible smooth white plain-yogurt half and a warm-looking small mound of tender pale-gold pear cubes with fine cinnamon flecks and a little juice. Both bowls have the same modest portions; no granola, nuts, berries, mint, honey drizzle, cinnamon sticks or extra garnish. — Original modern recipe illustration: Plain Yogurt with Warm Cinnamon Pears. See the measured recipe for portions and cooking instructions.

Ingredients

2 medium firm-ripe pears, washed, then peeled and cored to give 10½ oz/300 g prepared flesh
2 tablespoons drinking water (30 ml), plus up to 1 tablespoon (15 ml) only if the pan starts to dry
2 teaspoons lemon juice (10 ml), seeds removed
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon (0.5 g)
2 teaspoons honey (14 g)
1 cup plain pasteurized unsweetened yogurt (240 g), refrigerated at 40°F/4°C or below

Set out

Stovetop burner, Small heavy saucepan with lid, about 1½ qt/1.4 L, Knife, peeler and chopping board, Measuring spoons and kitchen scale, Spoon, clean heatproof bowl and 2 serving bowls, Refrigerator and shallow covered containers, Thin-probe food thermometer if reheating leftovers

Allergens

Milk. Yogurt contains milk. Check the actual container and substitutions for additional allergens or shared-equipment contact.

Make it

Keep the yogurt refrigerated. Cut all 300 g prepared pear into roughly½-in/1.25-cm pieces. Put the pear in the saucepan with 30 ml water, lemon juice and cinnamon. Stir so that the spice does not remain in a dry patch.
Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then cover and lower the heat. Cook 10–15 minutes, stirring once after about 7 minutes. Check that the fruit is not catching. If the pan is drying before the pear is tender, add the extra water one teaspoon/5 ml at a time, up to 15 ml.
Uncover and cook another 2–5 minutes as needed, stirring gently, until pieces are tender when pierced and their juice lightly coats them. Keep some shape rather than boiling the fruit to a watery puree. Firmer pears require longer and extend the clock.
Take the saucepan off the heat and stir in all the honey. Transfer the fruit to the clean heatproof bowl, spread it out and leave about 10 minutes until warm rather than scalding. Do not leave it on the counter to save for another meal.
Divide the cold yogurt equally between 2 serving bowls, 120 g each. Spoon half the warm pears and their juices beside or over each portion and serve immediately. No nuts, granola, extra fruit or garnish is included.

A useful detail

The 45-minute total allows 15 minutes preparation, up to 20 minutes cooking and about 10 minutes cooling to a comfortable serving warmth. A hard unripe pear may take longer; use firm-ripe fruit. The small water allowance supports covered cooking, not a poaching bath.

Keep it well

For leftovers, store the cooked fruit and yogurt separately. Cool fruit promptly in a shallow covered container and refrigerate within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, at 40°F/4°C or below. Use fruit within 2 days and yogurt before its label/opened-container deadline, whichever is earlier. Serve both cold or reheat only the fruit portion needed to 165°F/74°C, then let it become comfortably warm before combining with cold yogurt. Never warm the entire yogurt container and return it to storage.

How this recipe relates to the story

UPI’s 26 June 1990 report identifies plain yogurt as Smith’s last meal, without a measured amount or brand. This new dessert retains plain yogurt but adds fruit, honey and cinnamon and chooses two measured portions. None of those additions is asserted as his food.

Another way

Use the same 300 g prepared weight of firm apple instead of pear; allow extra covered cooking as needed until tender and extend the clock. This is another modern accompaniment.
For a less sweet version, omit the measured honey. The pear still needs to be cooked until tender; honey is not a preservation step.