Ok - so I thought Grady would be thrilled with pears. I bought them fresh, steamed them and ran them through the food mill. I think they're delicious! Grady screwed up his face into the funniest look the first few spoonsful. Eventually, he did start to like them.
I've been using a KidCo Food Mill given to me by a friend. It seems basic, and it is, but it works amazingly well. As of this writing, Grady has also tried bananas (loved them instantly) and zucchini (not sure about them yet, but they do taste like squash). We'll keep experimenting.