Preparation

1. Peel the fruit if it has a skin and trim off any stems. Remove the seeds from the fruit and cut out any fibrous tissue, such as piths, seed cavities or rind.

2. Cut the fruit to the desired size. Don't cut the pieces of fruit smaller than 1 inch; the fruit will cook down when you caramelize it, and small pieces collapse and lose their structure before they finish. Cut bananas in half lengthwise; don't chop them. You can halve large fruits, such as pears and apples, and leave small fruits, such as berries, whole. The dimensions of the pieces don't matter as much as cutting them uniformly.

3. Sprinkle sugar over the fruit if desired. Sugar isn't a necessity when caramelizing fruit, but has some benefits. Any type of sugar works, but raw sugars, such as turbinado and muscavado, add a little complexity to the fruit's flavor profile.

Pan Caramelization

1. Melt a tablespoon or two of butter in a nonstick saute pan over medium heat and place the fruit in it, cut side down. If the pieces have a few cut surfaces, it doesn't matter which side you lay it on as long as they lie flat.

2. Cook the fruit undisturbed for 2 or 3 minutes. The amount of time it takes to caramelize fruits depends on how much water they contain, except for bananas. Turn bananas over after 45 seconds to 1 minute of cooking.

3. Check the fruit after 2 or 3 minutes to see if it has caramelized yet. Caramelized fruit has a golden brown crust covering the cut surface and a nutty, caramel aroma. Again, different fruits caramelize at different rates. Halved pears and apples, for example, take about 5 minutes to caramelize, whereas halved strawberries take a couple minutes, max. That's why using your nose and eyes is more important than a time when caramelizing fruit.

   If you're caramelizing bananas, take them out of the pan after cooking for 30 seconds on the second side, bringing the total cooking time to about 1 minute and 30 seconds.

4. Turn the fruit over after the first side caramelizes. It should take about half as long to caramelize the other side of the fruit, but it varies with the fruit. Check the fruit after a couple minutes and remove it when it has a golden brown color and crust-like texture.

5. Serve the fruit as is or with a little cream.

Oven Caramelization

1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the fruit on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. If you have large pieces of fruit, like halved pears, place them cut-side up. Space the fruits about 1/4 inch apart. You may lightly oil the baking sheet instead of using parchment paper if you like.

2. Place the fruit in the oven. Roast the fruit for about 10 minutes and check it. It should just be starting to caramelize after 10 minutes. Roast the fruit a couple minutes more if you want it darker, but don't exceed 15 minutes.

3. Turn the fruit over or stir it. Caramelize the other side for a couple minutes, or until it browns. Take the fruit out of the oven and transfer it to the serving plate.

4. Serve the fruit as is or with cream or accompanying sauce.