Divine Caramel Pear Crisp

Divine Caramel Pear Crisp is a pie recipe built around salt, heavy whipping cream and vanilla. Plan on 8 servings and about 75 minutes.

• Yield 8 servings
• Ready in 75 minutes
• Prep 20 minutes
• Cook 55 minutes

Ingredients

Easy Caramel Sauce

• ½ cup ( 113 g ) salted butter
• 1 ½ cups ( 318 g ) packed light brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla

Pear Filling

• 4 pounds about 8 medium ripe pears, peeled, cored and diced
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Topping

• 1 cup ( 212 g ) packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup ( 142 g ) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup ( 100 g ) old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup ( 170 g ) salted butter , cut into pieces

For Serving

• Vanilla Ice Cream
• Caramel Sauce

Instructions

1. For the caramel sauce, in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, salt and cream. Melt over low heat. Once all ingredients are melted and combined, increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. There's no need to stir but watch the heat - if it seems as though the mixture might be burning on the bottom (which can often happen if you are using a pan that isn't heavy-bottomed), reduce the heat. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set aside to cool slightly (the caramel sauce can be made up to a week in advance - if using it in the recipe, warm slightly before adding to the pears).
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 8 1/2-inch by 12-inch pan with cooking spray (I know that's a random size that I happen to have - if you don't have that size, use something close like a 9X13-inch pan).
3. Toss the pears in a large bowl with the lemon juice, flour and cinnamon. Pour 1 cup of the caramel sauce over the pears and stir to combine well. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.
4. For the topping, in a medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, and salt. Toss the pieces of butter in with the ingredients and use a pastry blender, two knives, your fingers, or anything else to cut the butter in until the mixture is crumbly. Spread the topping evenly over the pears.
5. Bake the crisp until the edges are bubbling and the top has deepened in color, 45-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 30 minutes. The crisp can be served warm or at room temperature.
6. Serve with vanilla ice cream and remaining caramel sauce.

Let the center settle before you cut it, or the slices will slump.