Smoked Pear-Apple Crisp with Bacon Brown Sugar Crumble

Serves 8 | Total Time: 1 hour 15 mins

Few things go better with apples than pork and we all know that the best form of pork is bacon – so why not let what wants to be together come together? This is a great fall desert when apples and pears are at their peak.

Filling

• ½ stick Unsalted Butter, cut into ¼ inch pieces
• 4 Braeburn Apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼-inch slices
• 3 Comice Pears, peeled, cored and cut into ¼-inch slices
• ½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 6 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
• 3 Tablespoons Pear Brandy
• 1 Tablespoon Grand Marnier

Topping

• 10 slices Apple Wood Smoked Bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
• ½ cup Light Brown Sugar, tightly packed
• ½ cup All-Purpose Flour
• 4 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
• 1 stick Unsalted Butter, cut into ¼-inch pieces
• ¾ cup Pecans, toasted

Instructions

Preheat grill to 350° to 400° (medium-high).

Toast the pecans on the grill by spreading them out on a small cookie sheet and baking for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a medium cast iron skillet, melt ½ stick of butter and add the apples, pears, cinnamon & sugar and cook over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apples and pears are tender. About 7 minutes.

Butter a disposable ½ aluminum hotel pan.

Remove apple-pear mixture from the heat and add brandy and Grand Marnier. Stir to mix then add to the buttered aluminum pan.

In a medium cast iron skillet, cook the bacon pieces over low-medium heat. Transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel to drain. Drain the bacon grease from the skillet and return the bacon to the skillet and sprinkle with 4 Tbsp. brown sugar. Cook until the sugar has coated the bacon, about 3 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a cutting board and chop bacon into bits.

In a bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar and remaining brown sugar. Add the butter and mix together with a fork until crumbly. Stir in the pecans and half of the bacon. Sprinkle the topping over the apple-pear mixture. Sprinkle the remaining bacon over the top.

Place the crisp on the grill and cover to back until the top is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Let cool and serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.