The 18th-Century Stewed Pear Dessert That Was As Pretty As It Was Poisonous

History

The 18th-Century Stewed Pear Dessert That Was As Pretty As It Was Poisonous By Laura Christine Allan Dec. 9, 2025 9:00 pm EST

There's a fair amount of romanticism about old courtly foods and Victorian feasts. While some recipes from that time still exist today, many have faded into obscurity due to a lack of ingredients or unpopular flavors. One 1700s dessert is no longer served for a better reason than most. Stewed purple pears were a soft, sliced pear dish that used only sugar, water, and heat to slowly change the pears to a pleasing purple color. The result was a delicious confection served with liquor. Too bad it was utterly deadly.

While there are foods that can prove deadly if not done right , this is a rare case of the food being deadly because it was done r