A Taste of Sacramento
“They do pretty nice things in Sacramento, and Horace told how they did things in Sacramento as they rode along.”
East of Eden, John Steinbeck
Inspiration
Last month I attended the International Food Bloggers Conference, IFBC, in Sacramento. It was my first food blogging conference. Gerlinde, of Sunny Cove Chef, and I traveled and roomed together. It was a whirlwind four days of non-stop activity. The experience was rewarding and I recommend attending next year’s conference in Sacramento.
One of my favorite parts of the conference was the pre-conference excursion to California Endive and Stillwater Orchards. The bus trip through the Sacramento Delta was fascinating. Islands with draw-bridges and ghost towns with buried California history demand another trip to this area of California. We visited Stillwater Orchard during Bartlett and Bosc pear harvest. Trees filled with ripe fruit are magical to me. I always thought pear season was in fall, but in California the harvest begins in July. We enjoyed lunch in the shade of an ancient tree near the orchard. Our luncheon ended with individual servings of pear crisp. Since returning home I have been obsessed with making my own version with pears and ginger. I made the Double Ginger Pear Crisp with the Bartlett pears that were shared with us during our visit to the orchard.
Essentials
This recipe is more fruit than crisp, which is the best kind of fruit dessert. I stopped taking photos to eat an entire crisp while it was still warm from the oven. The aroma of pears, ginger, toasted oatmeal and brown sugar overwhelmed all my self-control. I easily succumb to my dessert fantasies. Oatmeal in the crisp offers a contrast to the melt in your mouth pears. Pears and ginger are a favorite flavor pairing but the ginger in the crisp can be replaced with the seeds of a juicy vanilla bean folded into the pear filling. Pears are unique in that they continue to ripen after harvest. The ripeness is determined at the very smallest part of the fruit— by the stem. When a pear is ripe this is the part of the fruit that softens. Waiting for the entire fruit to become soft leads to a mushy pear.
| Double Ginger Crisp | |
| 3/4C | old-fashioned oats |
| 1/3C + 1T | white, whole wheat flour |
| 1/3C | brown sugar |
| 3T | organic cane sugar |
| 3T | finely minced candied ginger |
| 1t | ground ginger |
| 1/2t | ground nutmeg |
| 1/2t | fine grain sea salt |
| 5T | unsalted butter, chilled and cubed |
| Pear filling | |
| 7C/3 lbs | Bartlett pears |
| 1t | lemon zest |
| 1T | lemon juice |
| 3T | organic cane sugar |
| 1T | cornstarch |
- Heat the oven to 350°. Butter individual ramekins or other oven safe baking pans. I used four enamel coated, cast iron pans, each holding approximately 1-1/2C of the pear mixture. An 8”x8” baking pan can also be used. Adjust baking time, depending on the size of the pan(s) used.
- In a medium sized bowl add the oats, flour, both sugars, both gingers, nutmeg and salt. Mix the ingredients together and then add the butter. Work the butter into the dry ingredients. Dip down to the bottom of the bowl to include all the flour. Massage the ingredients together until the butter is mostly the size of large peas and the mixture begins to clump together.
- In another medium sized bowl add the pears, lemon zest and juice, sugar and cornstarch. Fold the ingredients together until the cornstarch is no longer visible. Divide the pears evenly among the baking pans. Top the pears with the crisp topping, dividing evenly among all the pans. Place the individual crisps on a sheet pan and bake for 45 minutes. When done the pear juices will bubble up around the topping and the crisp will be golden brown.
Bloggers who attended IFBC were offered a discounted conference rate in exchange for blogging about the event. All opinions, photography and the recipe are my own.
Gorgeous. Found you via Gerlinde. You two must be a perfect peachy pair (or pears?) together. Enjoyed reading about both of your experiences during the pre-conference excursion. I know that part of the world, and many do not. It’s lovely. As is your post!
Thank you for stopping by Pamela! As a native Californian, I’m always amazed at how much I don’t know about California!
It’s treats like this that make fall such a great time of the year! Can’t wait for pears to come in here. This crispy looks awesome and I love that bit of crystallized ginger. That must really complement the flavor of the pears. Lovely!
Thank you MJ! I am very fond of ginger and pears!
Such a gorgeous crisp! I love the pear and ginger flavors (perfect together!), and I’d happily eat this in the morning with my coffee, or add a scoop of vanilla ice cream later in the day. Thanks for the tip about the conference, I’ll have to look into it for next year!
Thank you Laura! I would love to meet you in person at next year’s IFBC!
It sounds like you had a great trip and learned a lot. I have been to two UK food blogger conferences and the best thing was meeting fellow bloggers. It gets you fired up to do more and share more. And speaking of sharing, thanks for sharing this beautiful autumnal recipe. The UK pears should be ready in late September. Pinning and Flipboarding this comforting, sweetly spicy fruit crisp. 🙂
Thank you for the pear love Kellie, much appreciated!
Goodness, i am SO ready for pears! And this looks gorgeous – i agree, anytime there’s more fruit than crumble/crisp, it’s a good thing! Great tip about how to determine ripeness, also. Lovely, Deb!
Thank you Shannon! I appreciate your delicious comment!
If I had just one fruit tree it would be a pear. This looks very good and I shall now hope my neighbour will be generous when hers ripen! 😉
Oh I wish I had room for fruit tress too! Thank you for commenting Cathy!
I had a wonderful time with you Deb and I hope we will do it again next year. The crisp looks delicious and your photos are stunning.
Yes to IFBC next year! Thank you for for your delightful comment Gerlinde!
Deb, I too thought that Pear season was in the Fall, but there were pears galore at Whole Foods today. Since pears are among my favorite fruits, I’m happy to get an early start on them. I love your pairing (excuse the pun) of ginger with the pears!
I just might have to attend the convention in Sacramento next year. It would be wonderful to finally meet you in person. 🙂
Thank you Mary! I had no idea pears season was so early in the year! If you can make it ti IFBC next year, I would love to meet you!
I just adore pears and this recipe is lovely. I love the spices! I’m definitely gearing up for fall flavors. And the pears are so pretty hanging on the tree! I’ve never been to IFBC, only smaller conferences. Hope it was a great experience!
Thank you Valentina! If you can make it to IFBC next year, I highly recommend it.
It made my mouth water. I will need a big bowl of it topped with a scoop of ice cream. Yummy!
Thank you Denise! And yes, ice cream would be divine!
This looks marvelous and now I can’t wait until pears arrive at our farmers market!
Thank you Carol! I really enjoyed this recipe.
Love the crispy top, but the fruit is the real appeal. So more fruit than crisp works for me! Fun recipe, and it sounds like you had a wonderful time at IFBC. Great read — thanks.
Thank you for the gracious comment John, much appreciated!