Happy Friday!
Just a quick note about the pancake recipe I posted yesterday. I tried the pancakes this morning using a couple different methods after a reader mentioned the pancakes stuck to the pan after making a couple small substitutions. I went back into the kitchen to see if I could figure out why the pancakes might have stuck to the pan for someone else. For the first trial, I used an old skillet that wasn’t non-stick. The pancakes completely stuck to the skillet, just as I suspected. I also tried using my non-stick skillet, but I didn’t grease it first, and the pancakes stuck more than I’d like.
My suggestion is to use a non-stick pan and lightly grease it with oil before making the pancakes. I’ve made 5 batches this way and I didn’t have any problems with sticking. I’m also not sure how modifications to the recipe will hold up, such as flour substitutions, so I suggest following the recipe as written. It’s really anyone’s guess when changing a vegan & GF recipe!
In other news, I have a cute, little dessert for you today that is a cinch to whip up.
I had a couple pears on their last legs and thought it would be fun to make a 2-serving pear crisp in tiny little 8-oz ramekins.
Sometimes it’s nice to make a smaller portion when you don’t want to spend a lot of time prepping ingredients. It’s just enough to satisfy the sweet tooth!
Using my Strawberry Apple Breakfast Crisp (image above), I cut it down to make just two servings and then swapped out the fruit and spices. The result is a healthy pear crisp that is just sweet enough without going overboard.
Cardamom Almond Pear Crisp for Two
Yield
2 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This crisp is flourless, all-natural, low in sugar, and vegan. I love the chewy topping thanks to the almond mixture. To make this gluten-free, use certified gluten-free oats.
Adapted from my Flourless Strawberry Apple Breakfast Crisp
Ingredients
For the fruit mixture
- 2 cups chopped pears, unpeeled (about 2)
- 1 tbsp Sucanat or brown sugar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom (or cinnamon)
- 1 vanilla bean, scraped (or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract)
For the topping
- 1 tsp coconut oil, melted (or olive oil)
- 3 tbsp almonds
- 2 tbsp rolled oats
- 1 tbsp Sucanat or brown sugar
- 1 tsp pure maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
- pinch of salt
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400F and grease two (8-oz) ramekin dishes with oil.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the fruit mixture ingredients (chopped pears, sugar, cornstarch, cardamom/cinnamon, and vanilla).
- In a processor (I used my mini processor), process the almonds until finely chopped. Now add in the oats and process just until chopped. If you don’t have a processor, you can probably do this by hand.
- In a small bowl, melt the coconut oil in the microwave. Now stir in the rest of the topping ingredients. Add 2 tablespoons of the topping mixture into fruit mixture and stir until combined. Divide the fruit mixture into ramekins. Sprinkle the rest of the topping on top of the fruit mixture.
- Cover ramekins with lid (or cover with tin foil and poke a couple holes). Bake, covered, at 400F for 22-25 minutes. The topping will burn if you don’t cover it. Allow to slightly cool for 10 minutes before serving with a scoop of vegan ice cream. Dig in!!!
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
A light and healthy dessert that will leave you feeling refreshed and satisfied just in time for spring!
You can serve it naked, but I definitely recommend serving it with a scoop of vegan ice cream. :) That one is a no brainer. The ice cream gets all melty and warm, creating a gooey, comforting dessert.
Can I just say how pumped I am over the spring-like weather forecast next week?
Anyone else being blessed by warmer weather?
Thank you for this! I’m always looking for smaller dessert recipes. I’m the only one in my house who eats sweets, so I don’t need a billion cookies kicking around tempting me!
Yay! Finally someone appreciates pears :D Looks delicious though!
I love crisps of all kinds and pear comes in second next to apple. Wonderful recipe!!
oh yum, love cardamom! one of my favorite spices
This looks so amazing, delicious, scrumptious, and absolutely perfect! I’ve been having a sweet tooth lately and need some inspiration for lighter sweets to keep me satisfied. Thank you so much for sharing this!
I have been making individual pear crisps for night time snacks all week! :) SO good. So Delicious Coconut Milk Vanilla Bean ice cream on the side has been my weakness. Have you tried it? Heavenly. We are going to be having some unusually warm weather next week too! Can’t wait!
This sounds so delicious and your photos are beautiful! I’m not a HUGE pear fan, but I would like to be.. ha, does that sound weird? Maybe this is the recipe to get me into them!
know what you mean Im not a huge pear fan either!
What a beautiful bowl of goodness!
Made a personal apple version of this last night with walnuts… saving my only pear for a walnut salad today. Regardless, it was delicious (and I took your advice with the ice cream topping, too)! Thanks for the inspiration/recipe. :)
Also, I’m loving the weather as well… went for my first run outside in a couple months and that air felt great! I did 5.6 miles in 54 minutes; pretty slow but hey, gotta start somewhere. I wish I could keep that pace that you do… although I have to say, I have been switching it up on my treadmill warm-up before weights, kind of like your treadmill workouts, and I think it’s made a difference!
I love how much care and attention you put into your recipes, Angela – going back to test and re-test the pancakes shows so much dedication.
The crisp looks wonderful – I wish I had a ramekin of it sitting in front of me right now! I’ve been loving the use of cardamom lately, and in combination with the pears… oh my! I’ll definitely have to give this a try sometime. :)
Awesome recipe! My hubby has a disease and even his allowable fruit list is small. I’m pretty sure I can make this for him with no subs. Thanks!
Here’s to the weather! Spring is coming Angela, even in Ontario! ;)
Both the pear crisp and the apple strawberry recipe look delicious! I can’t wait for summer berry season. Yum!
Your blog has changed the way I see food and eating.
Thank-you so much for what you are doing.
You are changing lives!
Thanks Kyle, that means so much to me!
This looks so delicious! I bought some pears this week and they were all unripe… and still haven’t ripened. I think they’re doomed. :(
Have fallen in live with oh she glows! Thank you so much for such great recipes and ideas. Been having VOO’s all week and had my first green monster this morning- not as scary as I thought!
I’m happy to hear that Harriet!
Your timing is impeccable – I wanted to make a not too sweet, healthy dessert for supper last night and low and behold you posted this blog. I was excited about the combination of pears and cardamom and thus was disappointed to discover that I was out of cardamom and had to substitute cinnamon :( Oh well, it was still fabulous. I can’t wait to make it again when I do have cardamom!
I made this last night & it was so good. I have never thought of using pears like that. The sun is shining it’s 49 degrees here & I want to run!
BEAUTIFUL spoons!!! woweeeee!
This desert looks very (very-very) delicious! Not to mention that with the still slightly chilly weather here (today we had our first real spring-ish sun) – a warm dessert like this one is extra appreciated.
I usually make something similar (replace the pears with apples, change some of the herbs and add more things like rolled oats and other healthy grains) for breakfast. But I never thought of pear and cardemon before. Which is silly, because I love both – so thank you for this recipe! :D
I also never had vegan ice-cream before but then again: there is a first time for everything. I must admit that I have gotten more than curious about it after all the praise from various people!
I love the idea of using cardamom spice in a crisp or cobbler! Especially perfect for pears, yum! =)
I made this last night but I used Granny Smith Apples. It was soooooooo good. The topping is so addicting. I am going to make a cherry one tonight. THANK YOU
Hey Holly, Im happy you enjoyed it!
That crisp looks delicious!
YES! I LOVE MINIATURE DESSERTS! you rock ange. Keep it up. Also, im getting antsy about the cookbook…I just want it HERE ALREADY!
I love making 2 serving desserts. It’s perfect for me and hubby without overindulging for days. Plus, I love a good fruit crisp!
We are enjoying absolutely beautiful weather in NH! All week it’s supposed to be nice. Keep your fingers crossed that Spring is here!
Ohh this looks amazing!! Can’t wait to try it!
I am allergic to almonds- do you think I should just omit them or would another nut work well as a substitution? Thanks!
Hi Angela!
I love your blog and have been reading it for years. Keep up the yummy cooking! Like you, I’m a runner, and have been vegan for about 5 months. Recently though I found out that I am anemic, and was wondering what you do to make sure you get enough iron? I would love if you had a “super iron meal” recipe or something like that. (Spinach, quinua, lentil, tofu sort of thing? It sounds yummy already). I’m taking supplements now but I would much rather be able to get my iron from my diet than a pill!
And yes, we’ve had warm weather in Ithaca, NY too! Yesterday was beautiful, went on an 11 mile run, and I was so happy.
Best,
Kathleen
I had four pears looking at me somewhat sadly so I whipped this up for dessert last night. It was so delicious and because I doubled the recipe, we had leftovers to take to school/work today for lunch. Perfect! :)
Love this recipe! Will be linking back to this in my upcoming post :)
I’ve been making this for the past couple of years so I thought I should let you know that I (and many others) think it’s delicious! I usually times the recipe by 5 to 8 for a group and it works splendidly – just needs a much longer cooking time. Everyone loves it and using cardamom puts it into the ‘interesting and mysterious’ realm!
I just wanted to drop a comment to say that you are my go to blog for literally any idea I have. Today I had some extra pears and here I am! I recommend you to everyone who asks about plant-based foods. Thnx for maaaaany great meals!
Aww Lindsay, THANK YOU this means the world to me! :) Enjoy that pear crisp! I have some pears on hand this week and I can’t wait to experiment with a new recipe idea.