Pear Cranberry Oat Crumble

Tonight's theme: Feeding friends at fall. I put my husband in charge of dinner, and volunteered to make dessert. I so wanted to make something from the lovely, seasonal Rustic Fruit Desserts, but was torn between two recipes. I ended up combining elements of both and coming up with my own creation: Pear Cranberry Oat Crumble.

The result is a layer of firm, honey-sweet pear balanced against a tart explosion of cranberry, underneath a crunchy oat-flaked topping. Topped with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, it was a grand finale to a wonderful autumn evening.

Pear Cranberry Oat Crumble

Topping:
2 c. rolled oats
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. fine sea salt
3/4 c. unsalted butter, melted

Fruit filling:
8 large pears, peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 c. cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 1/4 c. granulated sugar
2 T. cornstarch
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cardamom

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375F. Grease a 3-quart baking dish.

To make the topping, mix all the topping ingredients through salt in a bowl. Stir in the butter, then press the topping together with your hands to form small clumps. Put the topping in the freezer while you assemble the filling.

To make the filling, toss the fruit, sugar and spices together in a large bowl. Transfer the filling to the prepared pan and spread it out, pressing the fruit down into the corners.

Press the oat crumble evenly over the fruit, then bake for 60-70 minutes, or until the crumble is lightly golden and the filling is bubbling up in the corners. Cool for 20 minutes or so to temper the heat before serving. Serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

Storage: This crumble is best if served the day it is made, but any leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and kept at room temperature for 2-3 days. Reheat in a 300F oven for 10-15 minutes, until warm.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Eating seasonally can be glorious in July but tedious in February. Just when I began to tire of citrus, along came this month's dark garnet strawberries and tart, slightly retro rhubarb to mark the changing of the seasons.

I am a total sucker for rhubarb. I adore the sharp tang I get when I bite into it, and I look forward to the classic combo of rhubarb and strawberries every year. For Mother’s Day last Sunday, I used a recipe I found in Barbara Kingsolver’s book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. (The author includes multiple recipes for dishes she prepared using the food she and her family grew themselves for a year-long locavore experiment.)

I was a little worried because there didn’t seem to be a thickening agent in the fruit, but the rhubarb sort of melts into the strawberries and thickens up nicely. I doubled the topping because it's my mom's favorite part. Everyone liked it! If you haven’t tried rhubarb, I say: Give rhubarb a chance.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Adapted from Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

3 cups halved strawberries (cut large berries into thirds)
3 cups rhubarb, chopped
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice or nutmeg
1 cube unsalted butter, softened (NOT melted)

1) Preheat oven to 375ºF.

2) In a medium bowl, combine strawberries, rhubarb, and honey. Stir to coat. Pour mixture into the bottom of a 9x9-inch baking pan.

3) In a separate bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and allspice. Whisk together. Cut butter into smaller pieces. Add butter to flour mixture. Using a fork or pastry blender, mash butter and flour mixture until medium-sized crumbs are formed. Sprinkle crumbs evenly on top of the baking dish.

4) Bake about 45 minutes, or until rhubarb can be easily pierced with a knife. Topping should be browned and mixture should be bubbly. Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes. Serve with vanilla bean ice cream.

On Apricots, Foraging, Bartering, and Canning

Last summer was a bountiful and delicious one. I experienced a moment of revelation in July when I visited my parent’s house and discovered an apricot tree, heavy laden with fragrant, plump fruit that seemed to beg me to put it to good use.

I spent the next two weeks in feverish harvest mode. I brought baskets of apricots to work to share with colleagues, made freezer jam with my boyfriend, boiled up hearty homemade preserves, and cut and froze what couldn’t be used immediately. I even consulted some elderly ladies from my church on the lost art of canning, and emerged the fruit in a light sugary syrup, later lining the humble cupboard of my apartment with bright, attractive Mason jars.

For an American who had long grown accustomed to my weekly drive to the grocery store fulfilling my dietary needs, I often thought (and still think) of food in terms of dollars and cents. Last summer, however, taught me that nature has the capacity of generously providing for our needs in the most palatable way imaginable, if we will invest the time and effort to harvest and preserve this food.

I am also fascinated by the in vogue concept of foraging and bartering for food. One example of this trend are the many websites that encourage those with a surplus of fruit or veggies to share with those in need, or link up with those from the community who will are willing to share their own surplus. I love the idea of preventing waste, and providing fresh, seasonal food to as many people as possible, while promoting community unity.

Maybe I’m drawn to these ideas because they represent a romantic return to a simpler life based on agriculture, nature and tradition. Whatever the draw, I say: Let’s celebrate nature’s bounty this year, in whatever capacity we can. Also - anybody wanna trade me for some apricots?

On Locavores, Or How Bananas May Be Destroying the Earth

A new catchphrase has arisen in the past decade, the result of books such as Michael Pollen’s "The Omnivore’s Dilemma" and Barbara Kingsolver’s "Animal Vegetable Miracle". The word is locavore, meaning someone who eats locally grown food, generally within a 100 mile radius of their home. The reasons for doing so are:

1) Superior taste. When it comes to most fruits, vegetables, eggs, and meats, the fresher the food, the better the taste. Asparagus tastes better freshly picked and eaten 2 days later than it does when flown in from Chile and eaten 10 days later by an American in Arizona.

2) Environmental conscientiousness. Food that is flown or shipped in from other countries has a negative effect on the environment. Take for example, bananas. I will venture to say that every grocery store in America that carries produce sells bananas, nearly all of which are flown here from Latin America. Think of all the fossil fuel used in shipping that many bananas to us, not to mention the gas emissions by the planes or boats that bring them.

3) It’s economically savvy. Buying locally grown food supports local farmers and the overall local economy. It may be cheaper as well, as the price you pay does not include the cost of shipping that product from another country.

Even with this knowledge, at times it’s hard to be a strict locavore when you’re standing in the grocery store in December (after the farmer’s markets have closed until the spring), so I think of it more as a stop light. If I see something was grown locally, it’s a green light - I try to build my meals around such foods. If it was grown in the US, it’s a yellow light - I buy it if I need it. If I see it was shipped here from New Zealand, it’s a red light - I only buy it if I really need to.

Eating locally may be particularly difficult in the winter, when the options tend to be less plentiful than during the summer. Barbara Kingsolver suggests that this is the purpose of canning and freezing the bountiful foods in the summer, to sustain one through the time of cold. It is also helpful to know what is available in the wintertime, so here is a list of foods that are seasonal in the month of December:

VEGETABLES
broccoli broccolini brussels sprouts butternut squash cauliflower celery root collards fennel leeks mache potatoes (maincrop) pumpkin rutabaga salsify sweet potatoes sunchoke turnips

FRUIT & NUTS
chestnuts cranberries kiwi fruit oranges persimmon pomegranate tamarillo tangerines

MEAT
duck goose partridge pheasant quail rabbit venison

FISH & SEAFOOD
clams crab mussels oysters scallops

Also check out the web site Eat the Seasons for monthly lists of seasonal food and recipes!
http://www.eattheseasons.com/