Cheddar Pear Pie!

Strange name. Serious pastry.

This recipe's been in the family for years. Or, at least, in my immediate family. My mom used to bake the delectable, surprising Cheddar Pear Pie ever since I was a kid. And unlike most picky eater children, I embraced the concept--strange as it might sound (I also happened to love zucchini bread, eggs with syrup, and pizza dipped in ranch dressing).

And yes, it does sound strange. When I found a jar of Trader Joe's Pear Halves in White Grape Juice, I was inspired to dig up the old familiar recipe and experiment a bit with pears that were already peeled (easy!) and wouldn't go bad as fast as fresh fruit (practical!). But every guy I mentioned this pie plan to was skeptical. "Cheese? In a pie? I'll...take your word for it."

Oh please. Guys eat cheesecake all the time and don't bat an eye at the fact that yes, you're actually eating cheese in your dessert. Probably because cheesecake is so gosh-darn delicious. Just like Cheddar Pear Pie. If you're willing to give it a chance.

Now you may remember that I'm lactose intolerant (I don't get to have gosh-darn delicious cheesecake all that often), but the amount of cheddar in this pie is actually pretty minimal--just enough to add a hint of sharpness to an otherwise sweet dish and give the topping a nice golden brown crumble crust on the top. I also use Whole Foods' whole wheat pie shells for the crust on the bottom so you get an extra little health benefit there.

With the jarred pears and pie shell shortcuts, this recipe is actually a piece of cake (er, easy as pie?) to put together for a quick and astounding dessert. After a little research I determined the original source of the family recipe was actually a 1998 Taste of Home Magazine (Mom, you didn't invent it yourself??), so that may also help lend some credibility to the CPP concept for any remaining cynics in your taste-testing audience (16 of 17 Taste of Home online reviewers gave it 5 stars, guys).

Thus, without further ado, I give you the recipe for one of my favorite fruit pies:

Ingredients:

3 pears, peeled (an entire 25-ounce jar. It won't fill the pie shell to the brim, but I only had one jar. The original recipe calls for at least 4 pears).
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 whole wheat pie shell

For topping:
1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) butter, melted
1/2 cup flour (I use whole wheat pastry flour, as always)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1.) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spoon the pears into a large bowl and slice them into even pieces (I cut each half into about four slices). If you're using jarred pears, make sure to drain out all water from the jar and dab the pears in the bowl with paper towels to remove excess moisture. Then add the cornstarch and salt, and mix until you can't see the white of the cornstarch anymore. Pour the pear mixture into the empty pie shell.

2). In a separate bowl, melt the butter and add in your flour, sugar, and salt in the same bowl. Stir the topping ingredients together, then fold in the cheddar cheese. Work into a dough with your fingers to blend everything thoroughly, then use your fingers to crumble the dough.

3.) Sprinkle the crumbled dough on top of the pears in the pie shell until they are completely covered. Then use foil to cover the pie and prevent burning of the cheese and crust edges. Bake approximately 40 minutes at 400 degrees (you might want to check the pie after 30 minutes to make sure your oven isn't browning it too much). Then lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake an additional 5-10 minutes if it's not quite brown enough (I was going to go with 10 minutes but was so afraid of burning that I took it out after 5 and the pie still came out perfect).

4.) Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool at least 10 minutes. Serve while still warm (Personally, I don't mind cold pie, but this one tastes so good when heated up!). Store any leftovers (as if) in the fridge to prevent the pie from going bad. I mention this now because I forgot to store my Pumpkin Nut Bread in the fridge after a couple days (I left it sitting out on display in my kitchen under a nice glass dome) and the next two pieces I ate upset my stomach (a problem that I couldn't immediately identify the source of--I mean, it wasn't a dairy-based dessert so why was it making me sick? And then I realized, oh yeah, no preservatives).

The original recipe from Taste of Home actually calls for a temperature of 425 degrees and baking for 25-35 minutes. I would recommend scrapping that and going with my experimental version instead as I have tried making Cheddar Pear Pie in years past only to have burnt cheese and watery filling. This latest pie, however, came out solid (held up well to each pie server slicing) and can be seen as anything but burnt in the pictures above and below. As for the taste--that still lived up to my expectations from childhood. After carving out pieces for myself, my mom, and leaving a little behind for my dad and brothers, I took a slice to one of my guy taste testers who (unlike my family) had never heard of Cheddar Pear Pie.

I heated it up in the microwave, plated it, and waited. The piece was literally gone in seconds. Still, I needed a quote for all the skeptics out there.

"How was the pie?" I asked.

"Delicious!" was the response.

So now I have something to tell my disbelieving guy friends. They don't even have to take my word for it.