Cardamom Spiced Pear and Cranberry Crisp
Crisp, crumble, pie, betty, buckle… you may be familiar with the various names for baked fruit desserts containing some sort of crust or cake situation. While there’s some debate as to what goes in each one exactly, I’m here tell you that they’re all delicious! One of my personal favorite desserts (and let’s be honest here, breakfasts) is fruit crisp. I’ve made crisps for as long as I can remember; my mom always turned a surplus of fall fruit into a crisp and I have happily picked up her inclination to blanket ripe, seasonal fruit in a blanket of buttery oats. It’s just SO good.
What makes a crisp a crisp?
Let’s get into what a crisp actually is: in my mind, it’s a layer of baked fruit, usually spiced, covered in a crispy topping consisting of oats, butter, and sugar. Some crisp toppings involve using flour, and some do not; in my mind, adding flour takes the topping into streusel territory. While delicious, I wanted to see if I could make a truly crispy topping without the flour. To me, this lightens it up just enough to make a delicious pre-Thanksgiving breakfast (I wasn’t kidding) or a quicker alternative to pie. And bonus, it happens to be gluten free!
The filling, comprised of juicy, sweet pears and tart little cranberries is wonderfully lifted to a new level with the addition of cardamom. I went the extra step of adding cardamom to the topping, too; it’s a welcome addition. Fresh cranberries are key here, because sweetened dried cranberries won’t add the acidic punch that offsets the buttery richness of the topping. All together, this baked dessert is a beautiful celebration of fall flavors, and one I will be making over and over!
Cardamom Spiced Pear and Cranberry Crisp Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (184 grams) white sugar
- 1 tablespoon (7 grams) lemon zest
- 3 pounds (1360 grams) comice, d'anjou, or other green pears, peeled if desired, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick (cut in half if smaller pieces are desired)
- 1 1/2 cups (186 grams) fresh cranberries
- 2 tablespoons (15 grams) cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons (21 grams) fresh lemon juice
- 2 cups (168 grams) rolled old fashioned oats
- 1/4 cup (60 grams) white sugar
- 1/4 cup (58 grams) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup ( 112 grams, one stick) softened unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Place the sugar in a small bowl and rub the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingertips until the aroma releases and sugar is well combined with zest. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the filling.
- Combine the pears, cranberries in a large bowl. Sprinkle the cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamom, and kosher salt over fruit, and toss to coat. Add the lemon-infused sugar and lemon juice, and combine well. Set aside while you prepare the topping.
- Combine oats, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl. Add the softened butter and briefly toss to coat the cubes, then use your fingertips to smash the butter into the oat and sugar mixture. Over time, the oats will begin to clump. You can work the mixture until it's an even texture, or leave some clumps large and some small for variation.
- Pour fruit into an ungreased 9x13 baking or casserole dish, then scatter topping evenly over the top--it's okay if some fruit peeks through.
- Bake until the filling is bubbling throughout and top is golden brown, 45-60 minutes. Cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes:
Once cooled, can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.
Serving suggestions: dust with powdered sugar, or top with fresh whipped cream or vanilla yogurt!
If you really love cardamom, feel free to double the amount in either the filling, the crust, or both. It's a wonderfully fragrant and floral spice, so start off with less and add more if desired.
You can make this recipe as an apple crisp. Simply use the same amount of apples, by weight, peeling if desired (I don't). Use the cranberries, or add raspberries for a different tart note.
Calories
285.40Fat (grams)
11.98Sat. Fat (grams)
7.26Carbs (grams)
46.19Fiber (grams)
3.05Net carbs
43.14Sugar (grams)
36.41Protein (grams)
1.12Sodium (milligrams)
136.96Cholesterol (grams)
30.50