Cranberry-Pear Or Apple Dessert For Abundant Autumn Gardens

Autumn dessert giant tart

If you are lucky enough to be harvesting lots of pears or apples this fall, or just looking for a new dessert dish, here are two simple and tempting recipes using fresh fruit from the garden.  One combines cranberries and pears, the other uses blackberries and apples.  Feel free to mix and match berries depending on what berries are in season in your area.  Both recipes are courtesy of one of my fellow eZineArticles authors.  If you’re looking to buck tradition with a unique cranberry-themed recipe for Thanksgiving dinner, her Cranberry Pear dessert looks delish!

Recipes for Delicious Desserts Featuring Favorite Fall Fruits By guest author Linda Carol Wilson

Is there anything better on a cool Fall day than coming into the house and smelling the aroma of the season’s best fruits? Well, feeling the warmth of the oven might be a close second. Here are some recipes to enjoy this Fall and Winter (or anytime of the year), using some of our Fall favorites – pears, apples, and blackberries. Grab a cup of coffee, hot tea, or hot chocolate and enjoy a real treat.

Snapping Cranberry-Pear Crisp

currant berries
Fruit Mixture:

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
2 tbsp flour
5 med pears, peeled and sliced*

Topping:

1 cup coarsely crushed gingersnap cookies
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

For the fruit mixture, combine cranberry sauce and flour in a medium mixing bowl; mix well. Add the pear slices, toss to coat evenly. Place fruit mixture in a baking dish and set aside.

For the topping, in a small mixing bowl, combine cookie crumbs, flour, brown sugar, and butter; mix well. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the fruit mixture. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the pears are tender and the topping is golden brown.
Note: This is just as good when you substitute apples for the pears.

Oregon’s Blackberry-Apple Crunch

Filling:

4 cups sliced Granny Smith apples
2 cups fresh blackberries (may use frozen but do not thaw)
3/4 cup sugar

Topping:

3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the apples, berries, and sugar. When well combined, pour mixture into a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan or dish.

In another large bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, oats, walnuts, butter and cinnamon; blend together using your fingers. Sprinkle over the top of the fruit. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately an hour or until the top is brown and fruit is bubbly.

Enjoy!

For more of Linda’s dessert recipes visit her blog at http://ladybugssweettreats.blogspot.com