Fruit Turnovers
Darren | San Quentin State Prison
Using a broken coffee pot the prison guards had thrown away, I altered it to use as a Hot Pot. I used an upside down stainless steel seat from a stainless steel table as a cooking pan. As an oven, I used the big walk-in ovens, primarily used for the painting process known as “Powder Coat.” I set the oven to 350 F for 8 to 12 minutes and we then devoured a little slice of heaven.
- 2 lb 6-7 medium ripe Bartlett pears, peeled, cored and chopped in ¼” pieces (to yield about 5 cups chopped)
- 6 Tablespoons dark or very dark maple syrup
- 1 Tablespoon room temperature butter or margarine
- 2 large flour tortillas
Heat the oven to 350°F.
Place the chopped pears and maple syrup in a medium-sized saucepan and cook over medium heat. Stir occasionally, using a wooden spoon to help break up the fruit. Once the mixture begins to thicken (about 20 to 30 minutes), reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 20 to 30 minutes. The pear mixture will be thick and jam-like with soft chunks of fruit. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
Place the tortillas on a parchment-lined sheet pan and using a pastry brush, coat the edges of the tortillas generously with butter. Place ¼ cup of jam in the center of each tortilla, fold over and use the tines of a fork to press and seal the edges together. Brush additional butter on top of each turnover.
Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, until tortillas are lightly browned. Let cool slightly before cutting each turnover into three wedges.
Leftover filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.