Pear Apple Crisp

 

Untold years ago, I went through as many recipe clippings for fruit crisps that I could find. I made up a big chart to compare them, then consolidated them into a sort of grand unified fruit crisp formula. I used that formula to generate the recipe for this Apple and Cranberry Crisp. I was so happy with that recipe, I didn’t really feel the need to try much else for a long time.

That’s silly, though, since there are so many other flavors that need to be celebrated. And so, this weekend, I made a pear and apple crisp. I had done this before, but never really quantified things to publish. I love the flavor of apples and pears together, which is influenced heavily by the pears. The apples provide a little more structure, however, both in texture and, somehow, in flavor. They bring an almost neutral fruitiness and keep the pears from getting too cloying.

I had to add cardamom to both the topping mixture and the fruit mixture for this version of fall fruit crisp. I adore it with pears, and its slightly peppery warmth makes a cold night’s dessert special. I kept some cinnamon in there, too, and I think it mellows the cardamom while still allowing it to enhance the pears.

 

You could certainly do many other things with this basic fruit crisp formula. I really like walnuts in the topping, but you could use pecans, almonds or pistachios, or leave the nuts out entirely. I like the extra nuttiness of the whole wheat flour, but all-purpose flour would work just as well. You could also add berries (including cranberries!) or dried fruit to your fruit mixture. Cardamom doesn’t have to be there. You could enhance your pears with ginger or vanilla.

There’s plenty of room for personal taste in adapting this delicious fall fruit dessert. There’s also room for ice cream, which I highly recommend dolloped on top of a serving of warm Pear Apple Crisp with Cardamom.

Pear Apple Crisp with Cardamom

Topping

½ cup rolled oats

½ cup whole wheat flour

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup walnuts

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

3 cups pears, peeled and thinly sliced

3 cups apples, peeled and thinly sliced

1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch

½ cup brown sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray or grease it with oil or butter. Set aside.

2. In a medium size bowl, combine the oats, whole wheat flour, ½ cup brown sugar, walnuts, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon cardamom. Toss together to combine. Pour the melted butter over the oat mixture and toss together to coat all of the dry ingredients with the butter. Set aside.

3. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Gently toss all together to coat the fruit.

4. Transfer the fruit mixture to the prepared baking pan. Evenly distribute the topping mixture over the fruit filling.

5. Bake at 375 F for about 50 minutes, or until the top is well browned, the apples and pears are tender, and the filling is bubbling. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Makes about 6 servings.

Other recipes like this one: Apple Cranberry Crisp, Pear Apple Crumble Pie

One year ago: Kale and Wild Rice Casserole

Pear and Blackberry Galette

When I found some lovely locally-grown Summercrisp pears at about the same time that the local apple harvest was coming into the markets, I was planning to make both a fancy pear and almond tart and some kind simple apple pie. Time (not to mention calorie budgets) did not allow for both, so I ate the apples one at a time for week-day lunches and put the pears into a pie. Finding some nice blackberries as well put in mind a recipe I had bookmarked for an apple and blackberry galette, which was easily adapted for pears.

The original recipe called for peeling and partially cooking the apples before baking them in the galette. Since the pears were quite ripe, soft, and thin-skinned, I could skip both of those steps. If you have larger pears with thicker skins, you could peel them if you’d like. You shouldn’t have to pre-cook them. Just slice them thin and they should bake up just fine.

I’m absolutely addicted to the combination of pears and cardamom, so there was no way I was going to miss an opportunity to celebrate it here. I kept the vanilla extract from the ingredient list in the inspiration recipe, and its harmony with the cardamom, pears, and berries was wonderful: floral, but not cloying, and a little exotic. The ginger in the original recipe would also be very good, I’m sure, as would cinnamon or a combination of warm spices, such as Pumpkin Pie Spice.

I didn’t make a pastry from scratch for this dessert (*disappointed sigh*). I used a store-bought refrigerated crust instead and, while the galette was good this way, I can’t help thinking that a good homemade crust would have made it even better. Use whatever you like or whatever helps you celebrate seasonal fruits and your favorite spices in the time that you have.

I served this galette with lightly sweetened whipped cream, and, when I had some left, Vanilla Ice Cream. I think it would be great with Ginger Spice Ice Cream. I also served it plain, which was very good, too, but a bit of something cold and creamy is a nice accompaniment to a warm and fruity autumn dessert. Don’t you agree?

Pear and Blackberry Galette

Based on a recipe in Food Network Magazine

This pie is great served with whipped cream, Vanilla Ice Cream, or Ginger Spice Ice Cream

1-1 ¼ pounds ripe pears, thinly sliced (peeled if you like)

1 cup blackberries

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

¼ teaspoon freshly ground cardamom

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pastry for a single-crust pie, homemade or store-bought

Milk for brushing the crust

Coarse sugar for sprinkling the crust

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, combine the pears, blackberries, sugar, and cornstarch. Gently toss to coat the fruit well. Add the cardamom and vanilla and gently stir to distribute.

3. Roll the pie crust into a about a 12-inch circle. Place the pastry on the prepared baking sheet.

4. Mound the pear mixture onto the center of the pastry leaving about a 2-inch border. Fold the border pastry up over the edges of the fruit filling. Brush the pastry with milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

5. Bake at 400 F for 40-50 minutes, or until the fruit filling is tender and bubbling and the crust is crisp and golden brown. Cool on the pan on a wire rack. Carefully transfer the galette to a cutting surface to cut and serve. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.

Makes about 6 servings.

Other recipes like this one: Apple Turnovers with Dried Fruit, Pear Apple Crumble Pie, Plum and Grape Galette with Almonds

Pear and Apple Crumble Pie

I’m getting into a bit of a pie project. I almost hate to tell you about it in case I never make another pie after this one, but I’m determined to make this go. Recently, I was trying to decide on what kind of desserts to place my focus (I am quite focus challenged). Should it be cookies or cakes? I asked my husband for input and decided to add a third style of dessert to make a real list of choices. I asked, should it be cookies, cakes, or pies? The man chose pies. Who knew?

Coincidently, the November issue of Food Network Magazine came out shortly after this, and there are 10 pie recipes published within. All of them looked really good! I chose the crumble-topped pear and apple pie with which to begin my experiment.

 

This pie is fabulous! That being said, I did change a bit of the procedure from the original published recipe. Those instructions had the fruit cooked in the microwave first, then baked in the pie for another hour and a half. I decided that an hour and a half was enough cooking time for my pears and apples, and skipped the microwave step. I also went with craisins (instead of mixed dried fruit), chose brown sugar instead of white, and added some nutmeg with the cinnamon.

It is absolutely imperative that you place the pie on a baking sheet to bake, because it will bubble over. Or at least mine did. Significantly! I kind of expect this from fruit pies and am willing to take precautions/clean up a bit of mess. I just don’t want to clean up burned, fruit-juice-and-sugar mixtures from the bottom of my oven.

It is not imperative, however, to make your own pastry for pie. There, I said it. While I do find homemade pastry to be better, I’ve found that taking a little help from, say Pillsbury, is the difference between me making a pie and me making cookies or cake. I hope to improve my rusty crust skills if this pie journey continues, but until then…. (If you do want to make pastry, the recipes in this post, this post and this post should work.)

 

Pie is a bit of extra work for dessert, but this one is so delicious, I was happy to put in that time. The combination of ripe pears, good apples, and a few dried cranberries, sweetened with brown sugar and lots of honey was wonderful for this time of year. The addition of the juice and zest of a whole lemon, however, was what made this pie special. Lemon and honey make such a magical mixture and with the autumn fruits they were just wonderful. The crumble topping was fabulous, too, baking up sweet and crunchy and crumbly. Stop #1 on my pie adventure has been a success! I think there will be more pie in the not-to-distant future!

Pear Apple Crumble Pie

Adapted from Food Network Magazine

Pastry for single-crust pie (store-bought is fine)

For the topping:

¾ cup rolled oats

½ cup flour

½ cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly grated

6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces

For the filling:

1 ½ pounds pears, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

1 ½ pounds apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

½ cup dried cranberries

3 tablespoons flour

½ cup honey

¼ cup brown sugar

Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly grated

½ teaspoon salt

1. Roll out the pastry dough (or unroll a store-bought one) to about 12-inches in diameter. Drape the dough into a 9-inch pie pan and ease it to fit without stretching. Crimp or shape the edges as desired. Place the pastry in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to chill. (If you will be refrigerating it longer, cover it in plastic wrap.)

2. To make the topping: combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium-size bowl and toss together to combine well. Add the cold butter pieces and work them in until well incorporated and the mixture is crumbly. I like to use my hands for this, but you could use a pastry blender or a fork. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use (up to a few days).

3. Preheat oven to 375 F. To make the filling, combine all of the filling ingredients in a large bowl. Gently stir together, trying not to break up the fruit, until everything is well-combined.

4. Place the pie pan with the chilled crust on a large rimmed baking sheet lined with foil or a silicone baking mat. Pour the filling mixture into the crust, mounding it to fit as necessary. Crumble the topping mixture over the top of the filling, pressing it gently to make it fit.

5. Bake at 375 F for 1 ½ hours, or until the fruit is very soft and the topping and crust are well-browned. Begin checking the pie after about 45 minutes and tent with foil when the topping starts to get dark to prevent it from burning. Cool completely to serve (although it’s ok if you serve it while still a little warm). Top each serving with ice cream if desired.

Makes about 8 servings.

Other recipes like this one: Apple and Cranberry Crisp, Apple Turnovers with Dried Fruit

One year ago: Pumpkin Spice Latte Muffins