Easier Than Pie: Pear-Ginger Crisp

By Stan Parish, GQ

You avoided candied-yams duty, but now you're responsible for the Thanksgiving dinner's grand finale. Relax-this dessert is all about playing it safe while looking like you went all out. You say "crisp" and they think "apple." Then you drop the plot twist: It's pear crisp (because pears are at their peak right now) with a hit of ginger (for zing, though the fact that it's a digestive aid doesn't hurt).

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The "techniques" involved-slicing fruit; mixing butter, pecans, and brown sugar with your bare hands-are all skills a hyperactive 9-year-old could handle. I know, because I was 9 when my mom taught me how to make this dish. Look for Bartlett or Anjou pears, which have the sweetness to stand up to ginger and do well in the oven. The hardest step: remembering to pick up ice cream.

Pear-Ginger Crisp

Serves eight


3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

5 tbsp. granulated sugar

Cinnamon

Kosher salt

9 tbsp. unsalted butter, well softened

3 tbsp. candied ginger, chopped

Juice of 2 lemons

8 medium pears, peeled, cored, and cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch slices

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Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Toast the pecans over medium heat until fragrant. Set aside.

3. Mix the flour, brown sugar,nutmeg, 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar, and pinchesof cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Add the butter and combine until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in the pecans.

4. In a large bowl,
mix together the ginger, lemon juice, pears, the remaining granulated sugar, and a pinch of salt.

5. Place the fruit into an 8-by-10-inch baking dish, layer on the crumble, and bake until the topping is crisp, about 50 minutes.

6. In the unlikely event that there are leftovers, eat for breakfast.

Photo by Romulo Yanes

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