Description
Homemade caramel pear pie is the best fall pie! With an all-butter crust, spiced caramel pear filling, and crumble topping, this pie is perfection! Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and extra caramel sauce!
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 2 to 4 Tbsp ice water
Crumble Topping
- 3/4 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- pinch of nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cubed
Filling
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tsp arrowroot starch
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp cloves
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 8 cups pears, peeled and diced (1/4″ thick)
- 1/4 cup salted caramel sauce
Instructions
- Prepare dough: For the crust, combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add cubed butter and process for 10 seconds, just until the mixture resembles coarse meal. With the food processor running, add 2 tablespoons ice water in a steady stream through feed tube. If needed, add additional ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, and process just until dough holds together in large clumps (no more than 30 seconds). Wrap dough in plastic and flatten slightly to form a disc. Chill in the refrigerator at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days, or place in a freezer bag and freeze up to 1 month).
- Prepare crumble topping: Combine oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until large crumbs form. Chill until ready to use.
- Roll dough: Place dough on a floured board and dust dough with flour. Use a rolling pin to roll out dough (roll dough in one direction, then lift up dough and rotate a quarter turn and roll, then repeat) until dough is a 12 to 13-inch circle. If dough starts to stick, use a bench scraper to lift dough from board. Transfer dough to a 9-inch pie pan (see note below); trim overhang to one inch and crimp edges. Chill in the freezer for 30 minutes. Place a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil in the oven and preheat to 350°F.
- Prepare filling: Whisk together sugar, brown sugar, arrowroot starch, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt in a small bowl. Melt butter in a large skillet; add pears and cook over medium-high heat until slightly tender. Use a slotted spoon to transfer pears to a large mixing bowl, leaving the juices behind. Allow the pears to cool for 15 minutes before sprinkling with sugar mixture. Gently toss together until combined.
- Spoon filling into chilled bottom crust and drizzle with caramel sauce. Sprinkle evenly with crumble topping.
- Bake pie: Place pie dish on preheated baking sheet and bake for 60 to 65 minutes, until golden and filling is bubbling. If pie is fully frozen, baking time may be up to 90-100 minutes. Check pie partway through – if crust is browning too quickly, shield edges or top with foil for remaining baking time.
- Cool pie on a wire rack for at least 3 hours before serving (filling thickens as it cools). Once pie is cut, cover with plastic wrap and store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
Pie pan: I used a 9 x 1.5″ pie pan.
Starch: Arrowroot starch is a flavorless thickener that creates a smooth, shiny sauce. You can also substitute 1/4 cup cornstarch.
Substitute apples: You can also use apples for this pie. Simply pre-cook as directed in the recipe, and use a mix of sweet-tart varieties for the best flavor.
Make ahead: The dough, crumble topping, and salted caramel sauce can be made 1-2 days in advance and refrigerated until ready to use. You can also assemble the entire pie in advance, place in a freezer bag or wrap tightly in foil, and freeze up to 2 months. When you’re ready to bake, transfer the pie directly from the freezer to the oven (do not thaw) and bake as directed.