Farmgirl Susan's Old-Fashioned Pear and Apple Crisp

Makes one 8-inch or 9-inch square crisp

I've made this crisp with Bartlett and D'Anjou pears, but other varieties should work, too. You can use soft or firm ripe pears; it's up to you. Overripe pears are perfectly tasty, too, but the chunks won't hold their shape as well.

I like to use sweet apples like Gala and Fuji, but my hunky farmguy Joe prefers the tarter Granny Smiths. Use a softer apple if your pears are very soft. Leaving some of all of the pears and apples unpeeled will give your crisp a nice rustic look.

Thick oats give a nuttier texture than regular old-fashioned oats; if you can't find thick just use the regular (but not the quick) kind. This fills my 8-inch square white baking dish to the rim, so if the sides of yours aren't very tall, use a 9-inch square dish.

Topping:
1/2 cup organic all-purpose flour
1/2 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup thick old-fashioned (not quick) organic oats
3/4 cup (1½ sticks/6 ounces) organic butter, cut into small chunks

Filling:
2 pounds organic pears (about 4 large), peeled if desired, cored, and cut into 1-inch chunks
1¼ pounds organic apples (about 3 medium), peeled if desired, cored, and cut into 3/4" to 1" chunks
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon finely grated organic lemon zest
1 teaspoon finely grated organic orange zest
3 Tablespoons all-purpose organic flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (or 1/2 teaspoon pre-ground)

Heat the oven to 375°.

For the topping:
Combine the flours, brown sugar, and oats in a medium bowl. Blend in the butter using a pastry blender, two forks, or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Some larger chunks of butter are fine.

For the filling:
Place the pears and apples in a large bowl and toss with the lemon and orange juices. Add the lemon zest, orange zest, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well. Pour the fruit into the baking dish and cover evenly with the topping.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes, or until the topping is brown and the fruit is bubbling. Serve warm or cool, with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if desired.

This crisp will keep for 3 to 4 days in a cool pantry or the fridge. It also freezes beautifully. I've frozen one or two servings in containers, but you could probably freeze the whole crisp; either leave it in the pan (if it's freezer safe) or line the pan with heavy foil before baking, freeze the crisp in the pan, then lift the whole thing out and transfer it to a container or freezer bag. Set it back in the pan to defrost.

Recipe source: FarmgirlFare.com