Fresh Pear Crumble Pie

Since Mom is coming for a few days, and since I still have some pears left, I thought I’d make a family favorite…Fresh Pear Crumble Pie.  The recipe is at the end of this post.

You’ll need pastry for a single crust pie.

Homemade is by far the better choice, but refrigerated will do too.

Preheat the oven.

Is that am or pm?

You’ll also need peeled, sliced fresh pears:

Thre recipe calls for 5 cups, but I peel and slice until I have a pie full of sweetness.

Sprinkle pears with lemon juice.  Okay…I forgot to do this part and it still turned out scrumptious!

Combine sugar, flour and lemon peel (fresh is better, but I didn’t have any lemons on hand). 

Add pears to the mixture.

Add pear filling to the pastry:

Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger and mace.  Cut in butter.

Sprinkle topping mixture over the pear filling.

Bake.  The smart thing to do is cover the crust edges with foil to prevent overbrowning.  But hey…I’ll take the risk.

Baked Deliciousness!

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream…yummy goodness!

 Hubby and I couldn’t wait for Mom to get here…we dove right into that pie!

Fresh Pear Crumble Pie

Ingredients:

Pastry for single crust pie

5 cups peeled, sliced fresh pears (about 2-1/2 pounds)

3 tablespoons lemon juice

½ cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel

½ cup flour

½ cup sugar

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground mace

¼ cup butter

 

Directions:

Prepare and roll out pastry. Line a 9” pie plate. Trim pastry to ½“ beyond edge of pie plate. Flute edge; do not prick pastry.

 

In a bowl, sprinkle pears with lemon juice. In a large mixing bowl combine ½ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and lemon peel; stir in sliced pears. Spoon pear-sugar mixture into pastry-lined plate.

 

In another mixing bowl combine the ½ cup flour, ½ cup sugar, ginger, cinnamon, and mace. Cut in butter till mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle crumb mixture over pear filling.

 

To prevent overbrowning, cover edge of pie with foil. Bake in 375º for 25 minutes. Remove foil; bake for 25 to 30 minutes more or till pie is bubbly and crust is golden.

 

Cool on rack before serving.

Williams’ Bon Chretien aka Bartlett Pear

The Williams pear tree was imported from England into the United States about 1799 by Mr. James Carter.  The trees were planted on the grounds of Thomas Brewer in Roxbury, Massachusetts.  Enoch Bartlett of Dorchester, Massachusetts, acquired the Brewer estate. Not knowing the identity of the trees, Bartlett propagated and introduced the variety to the United States under his own name. In 1828, when new trees arrived from Europe, it was realized that Bartlett and Williams pears were one in the same.  For more of the interesting history of the Bartlett pear click here.

Williams, or Bartlett, pear is the most commonly grown pear in most countries outside of Asia.

We have two old Bartlett pear trees, but they are prolific producers.  And in spite of the natural pruning by bears and deer, we have a large enough harvest to keep us through winter and into spring.

Looks scrawny, doesn’t it?

In the above photo, the lower limbs are bare, thanks to natural pruning by deer.

Pears should be harvested while still green.  They will ripen at room temperature.

Up close…a scrawny tree can produce alot!

To the sounds of the protesting deer, huffing and stomping, Hubby harvested the pears.  I am working on canning six boxes worth.

Yummy pear goodness!

Bartletts have a wonderful flavor and sweetness and are quite versatile.  Can them, make fruit butter, pear sauce, preserves and chutney.  Dry them.  Slice them in a salad.  Bake a pear pie.  Drink a pear smoothie.  And, by all means, enjoy a fresh whole pear for a snack!

Brown Sugar-Peach Pie with Coconut Streusel

Here is a quick and easy recipe to use up the last of those fresh peaches.  I found it in The Best of Cooking Light 2004 cookbook.

You’ll need a total of 6 cups (about 3 pounds) of fresh peaches.  Peel and slice 4-1/2 cups peaches into a bowl.  For color and fun, I threw in some blackberries Hubby had picked from the garden.

Preheat oven to 425º.

Fit 1/2 (15 ounce ) package refrigerated pie dough into a 9 inch pie plate. Fold edges under; flute. Line the dough with a piece of foil, and arrange pie weights or dried beans on foil. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove pie weights and foil. Cool crust on a wire rack.

Yes, a homemade crust would be yummier, but we’re talkin’ quick and easy here.

Combine 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup tapioca, and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon in a bowl.

Sprinkle over peaches. Toss gently, and let stand 15 minutes.

Spoon the peach mixture into the prepared crust.

Top with 1-1/2 cups more peeled and sliced peaches.

Sweet yummy goodness!

Place the pie in the oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 350º (do not remove pie from oven). Bake 30 minutes.

Combine 1/3 cup sugar, 1/4 cup regular oats, and 1/3 cup flaked sweetened coconut. 

Melt 1-1/2 tablespoons butter.

Sprinkle  the oat mixture and melted butter over the peach mixture.

Shield edges of crust with foil (I didn’t bother, but this is a good tip to prevent overbrowning the crust edges). Bake an additional 30 minutes or until golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Not fancy, but delicious with whipped cream or ice cream!

Yield: 8 servings.

WIP – Follow Up to Canned Peaches

Just in case you were wondering:

I got 57 quarts out of 100 lbs. of peaches.  Whew!  That’s alot of goodness!

Alas…Still Canning

My posts are slowing down…considerably.  Here is one reason (forthcoming pears will be another reason…busy, busy, busy):

Yup…this is what 100lbs. of peaches looks like.

Fairhavens are juicy and sweet.  These are gonna be fabulous this winter!

Anyone want to guess how many quarts 100 lbs. of peaches will be?