Priority Fail

What do you do when you can't focus on ophthalmology readings and have a couple of bad pears on hand?

Procrasti-bake, of course ;)

Studying was a lost cause for my poor attention span so last night around 11pm I started browsing online recipes that use pears.  I got lucky with finebaking.com  and found that I had all the ingredients for their Pear & Brown Sugar Crisp. I adjusted the quantities to ~1/3 of the recipe and got to put my ramekins to good use!

The recipe was simple and took no time at all to put together which describes my style to a tee!

For the topping:

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/8 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine all ingredients and pulse in a food processor or blender until mixture holds together. Set aside.

For the Pear Filling:

• 2 pears, peeled, halved, and cored
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/8 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp flour (or 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch)

Cut pears into 1"x 1/2" cubes. Add all ingredients for pear filling in a medium bowl and toss to combine.

Spoon pear mixture into 3-4 ramekins until 3/4 filled. Cover with topping. Bake crisp until top is golden brown, approximately 25 minutes.

Serve warm and with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

It's not too often that I go for a recipe based on gut feel (vs. reviews) but this one turned out to be a keeper! I will definitely be making this again...and it is quite possible that I picked up some pears today with that intention in mind :).

Ophthalmology...your day will soon come :P