Yes, Asian pears can be baked

A gift of Asian pears sent me on a search for seasonal recipes. I believed that this orchard fruit, which exists somewhere between apple and standard pear, was always served raw, crunchy. So did most of the recipe writers, apparently. I found many salads that included it -- including an intriguing slaw.

Was there a way to cook this lovely summer-into-fall fruit? The weather was turning cooler -- baking weather! Then I found a New York Times recipe, "Fruit Cobbler with Any Fruit."

I took that title as a challenge, not a statement. The cobbler here is my riff on the recipe, with several adjustments to the filling, and a suggestion for changing up the biscuit topping, too.

It is an excellent dessert (especially with vanilla ice cream), but could make a lovely brunch dish. To test it, I made just a half recipe of the filling, though mixed a full recipe of the biscuits so I could freeze some for another time. The recipe version printed here is the full 8 servings.

A note on the fruit: Asian pears ARE crunchy, right off the tree. Several of mine had just started to soften, however, so I used those first, but included 1 crunchy pear to see how it baked. I tossed in a Bosc pear that was at the use-it-now-or-compost-it-tomorrow stage.

The filling's baked texture was firm but thoroughly cooked, like baking with firm apples. My fruit was small -- see the photo -- so I needed about 9 of them to reach 5 cups.

The original recipe had no spices in it, but I had to include cardamom, which plays so well with pears. Cinnamon and just a hint of ginger went in, too. But use what you like -- almond extract would be another possible addition. Next time I might include some crystallized ginger bits among the pears.

Spiced Asian pear cobbler

Serves 8

Ingredients:

Biscuits:

1-3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (or 1-1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup fine cornmeal)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed

1/2 cup buttermilk (or plain yogurt, not Greek)

1/4 cup heavy cream, plus 1 tablespoon, divided

Filling:

10 to 11 cups peeled, cored and sliced Asian pears, or a mix of Asian and Bosc pears

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3 tablespoons minute tapioca OR 1-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

Turbinado or other crunchy sugar, for sprinkling

Instructions:

Cover a small rimmed baking sheet or large plate with a piece of parchment or waxed paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt. Cut in the cold butter cubes with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal. (Alternatively, combine the dry ingredients in a food processsor, add the butter, and pulse a few times to cut in the butter. )

Drizzle in the buttermilk and 1/4 cup cream, and stir (or pulse) until the mixture is just combined.

Pat the dough together, either in the bowl or on a lightly floured surface.  Using a soup spoon or one of similar size, scoop 2-inch mounds of dough and roll them into balls with your hands. Place the balls on the parchment-covered baking sheet or plate, leaving space between them. The recipe will yield about 10 balls. 

Flatten the balls with your hand to 3/4-inch thick, cover them with plastic, then place the baking sheet or plate in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes and up to  8 hours. (A quick chill in the freezer works, too, but don't forget they're in there!)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss together the prepared pears, the sugars, spices and the minute tapioca or cornstarch. Allow to sit for 20 minutes -- this hydrates the tapioca pearls.

When ready to bake, pour the fruit (and any accumulated juices) into a large baking dish or 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Top the fruit with the biscuits, leaving space between them to expand. Brush the biscuits with the remaining 1 tablespoon cream, then sprinkle on the turbinado or other crunchy sugar.

Bake until the biscuits are golden brown and you can see bubbling among the fruit, about 1 hour. (About 50 minutes for a 1/2 recipe.) Remove the pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool 30 minutes before serving; the biscuits and fruit will still be warm. Or allow to cool completely and serve later at room temperature.

Note on freezing the extra biscuits for later: I double-wrapped them before freezing. They should bake fine straight from the freezer, though likely will require a few additional minutes.