Pear Apple Crisp

The air turned cooler this past weekend, that point in September when we turn off the air conditioning, open the windows and start making hot coffee in the morning rather than iced. Though berries, peaches and nectarines can still be found at the farmers market, apples and pears are the real stars of fall. I stopped by my favorite fruit stand, The Orchards of Concklin, on Sunday and picked up Gala and Mac apples and Barlett pears. I was thinking some sort of fruit dessert, maybe turnovers or a crisp, and I set to work when I got home.

I love making crisps because they don’t require a crust—something I don’t have much time for with an active one-year-old as my sous chef. (And truth be told, my crust crimping skills leave something to be desired.) Plus, crisp recipes often require a healthy dose of rolled oats which makes me feel like I am eating a slightly healthier dessert. I didn’t have an apple crisp recipe so I found one online and then made a few tweaks, incorporating pears as well.

Wow. This is a seriously delicious dessert. I normally like my crisps topped with ice cream, but this one is sweet enough to stand alone.  The oats add a pleasant crunch and the cinnamon and sugar instantly conjure up crisp fall mornings. I won’t lie—I have been eating this crisp straight from the dish (and picking off the crumb topping throughout the day.) If you have plans to go apple or pear picking in the next few weeks, you now have something to make with your bounty.

Pear Apple Crisp (adapted from AllRecipes.com)

For the filling:

4 cups of apples, peeled, cored and sliced (I used a mixture of Gala and Pink Ladies)

4 cups of pears, peeled and sliced (I used Barlett)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the topping:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup quick cooking rolled oats

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 stick of unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the apples and pears in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish (I used a slightly smaller dish). Mix the white sugar, 1 tablespoon flour and ground cinnamon together, and sprinkle over apples. Combine the oats, 1 cup flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture. Bake for 45 minutes or until the fruit is bubbly.

This post is part of Food Network’s Summer Fest, a weekly collection of delicious recipes starring the season’s best bounty. For more ideas on how to cook and bake with apples, check out the blogs below!

Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Gluten-Free Jewish Apple Cake

Virtually Homemade: Apple Pie Muffin

Chez Us: Baked Apples With Creme Anglaise

Daily*Dishin: Easier-than-Pie Creamy Apple Bake

Napa Farmhouse 1885: Apple, Fennel and Cheddar Cheese Panini

From My Corner of Saratoga: Spiced Apple Dutch Baby

Thursday Night Dinner: Apple Bread Pudding

Devour: 7 Apple Desserts Beyond Pie

Healthy Eats: Marrying the Apple With New Flavors

FN Dish: Let’s Go Apple Picking