Strudel Topped Pear Pie

As many of you may well know, once a month I get together with some of my closest friends and we have an evening full of laughter, good books, and good food. This past month I was lucky enough to claim the dessert before anyone else. And since I only had two last book clubs before moving far, far away, (little do they know I plan on skyping in to future meetings, but alas it will be without the food!) I decided I wanted to make something really good.

 The grocery store had some delicious pears, and after a quick search, I settled on a pear pie. I thought it sounded interesting - I had never had pears in a pie before, and the strudel topping sounded perfectly awesome.  I really liked this pie. It was quick and easy to make and had a great flavor. The strudel crunch on top was so much fun, and definitely added a lot of depth to the pie!

I would like to write more about this pie, and how great it is, but I'm currently being blugeoned with the sixth Harry Potter book. We're about halfway through, and we not only have to find out if Harry can get Slughorn to reveal his memory about Voldemort, but we also have to finish the book, watch the sixth movie, and then get halfway through the seventh book before the new movie gets shipped from Amazon...

Strudel Topped Pear Pie (Cooking Light)

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/2 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/3 cup ice water
• Cooking spray
• 1/2 cup regular oats
• 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 7 cups thinly sliced ripe Bartlett pears (about 6 pears)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Lightly spoon 2 cups flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife.
• Combine 2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor; pulse 2 times to combine.
• Add butter, and pulse 6 times or until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
• With processor on, slowly pour ice water through food chute, processing just until blended (do not allow dough to form a ball).
• Remove two-thirds of dough, and press into a 4-inch circle on 2 overlapping sheets of plastic wrap. (Leave the remaining dough in processor.)
• Cover the dough with 2 additional sheets of overlapping plastic wrap.
• Roll dough, still covered, into an 11-inch circle.
• Place the dough in freezer 5 minutes or until plastic wrap can be easily removed.
• Remove top sheets of plastic wrap, and fit dough, plastic wrap side up, into a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray.
• Remove the remaining plastic wrap. Fold edges under; flute. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Add oats and brown sugar to dough in food processor; pulse 4 times or until crumbly. Cover and chill.
• Preheat oven to 375°.
• Combine pears, granulated sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, ginger, cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; toss well to combine.
• Spoon pear mixture into crust.
• Bake at 375° for 25 minutes.
• Sprinkle oat mixture over pear mixture.
• Bake an additional 25 minutes or until top of pie is browned.
• Cool at least 2 hours.