Post #377032 by Little fragrant Tiare on Tue, Apr 29, 2008 4:48 PM

You can make your own Prickly pear sauce like this:

2 1/2 pounds (about 16) fresh prickly pears
1/3 cup sugar, plus a little more if needed
About 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, if needed
About 1 tablespoon orange liqueur

The puree is very watery, like watermelon juice, so in order to give the sauce some body but not take away all the fruit's freshness, rapidly boil down part of the puree with sugar, then cool it and add the remaining uncooked puree.

Servings: Makes about 2 cups.

Cut a 1/2-inch slice off both ends of the prickly pears, then make a 1/2-inch deep incision down the side of each one. Carefully (remember there are little stickers) peel off the rind, starting from your incision: The rind is thick, and, if the fruit is ripe, will peel easily away from the central core. Roughly chop the peeled prickly pears, puree in a food processor or blender, then press through a fine strainer into a bowl. There should be about 3 cups.

In a medium-size (2- to 3-quart) saucepan, combine 2 cups of the puree with 1/3 cup sugar, and simmer rapidly over medium to medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until reduce to 1 cup. Cool.

Combine the cooked mixture with the remaining1 cup of uncooked puree in a small bowl. Taste and season with lime juice, orange liqueur and additional sugar if needed.

Advance Preparation:
Covered and refrigerated, the sauce will keep about a week. The finished sauce (as well as the prickly-pear pulp) also can be frozen.