Roasted beets deliver subtle, earthy tones that complement the sweet pears and nutty crumb topping in this Blushing Pear Pie. For a closer look at how to master your piecrust, see our Perfect Piecrust Crash Course. For five more pie recipes and our complete guide to fall pie, get our September/October issue!
Blushing Pear Pie
Makes 1 (9-inch) pie
Ingredients
- Traditional American Pie Crust (recipe follows)
- ½ cup (83 grams) diced roasted beet*
- ⅓ cup (67 grams) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (55 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons (24 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (1 gram) lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons (10 grams) apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon (1 gram) ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon (1 gram) ground cardamom
- 3 to 4 dashes bitters
- 8 cups (928 grams) ¼-inch-thick sliced peeled Bosc pears
- Almond Oat Crumble (recipe follows)
Instructions
- On a lightly floured surface, roll Traditional American Piecrust into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate, pressing into bottom and up sides. Trim dough to ½ inch beyond edge of plate. Fold edges under. Using kitchen scissors, make 2 (45-degree) cuts into folded edge ¼ inch apart, being careful not to cut all the way through the dough. Twist cut piece of dough, and tuck pointed end underneath crust. Make another ¼-inch cut, twist, and tuck under. Repeat procedure around pie until you reach the first cut. Freeze for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
- In the work bowl of a food processor, combine beet, sugars, flour, lemon zest and juice, vinegar, ginger, salt, pepper, cardamom, and bitters; process until puréed. Place pears in a medium bowl; pour beet mixture over pears, and stir to combine. Spoon into prepared crust.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Top with Almond Oat Crumble, and bake until bubbly, about 30 minutes more, covering with foil to prevent excess browning, if necessary. Let cool for 1 hour; serve warm.
Notes
*To roast a beet, cut off stem, coat in 1 tablespoon (14 grams) olive oil, and wrap in foil. Roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven until soft, about 1 hour. Let cool for 15 minutes. Remove foil, and let cool 10 minutes more. Rub with a paper towel to peel. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Traditional American Piecrust
Makes 1 (9-inch) crust
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
- ½ cup (113 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- ⅓ cup (80 grams) ice water
Instructions
- In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour and salt; pulse until combined. Add cold butter, and pulse until mixture is crumbly. With processor running, pour ⅓ cup (80 grams) ice water through food chute in a slow, steady stream just until dough comes together. (Mixture may appear crumbly. It should be moist and hold together when pinched.) Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Dough may be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
Notes
Press the dough into a disk rather than shaping it into a ball to allow it to chill faster. This will also make the dough easier to roll out.
Almond Oat Crumble
Makes about 2 cups
Ingredients
- 1 cup (80 grams) old-fashioned oats
- ½ cup (48 grams) almond meal
- ⅓ cup (73 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (31 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
- ¼ cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, cubed
- ½ cup (57 grams) chopped pecans
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together oats, almond meal, brown sugar, flour, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in pecans. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.
I just made this, it’s cooling on the counter right now but I tasted everything along the way and I just know it’s gonna be worth the ingredients/time investment
I used my own crust recipe and par baked it cuz I’m stupidly loyal to my methods, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. 2 things-if you’re not gonna pre cook your pears, you’ll need more like 6C (like 3 large) for a plump pie. You’ll also only need like 2/3rds of the crumble for a nice thick layer. The beet puree stuff is so delicious though, absolutely can’t wait to taste it in the pie. The crumble is also insanely good, I’m glad I splurged on almond meal and pecans!!