PEAR & CHOCOLATE CRUMBLE...perfect for the season!

This season, some of my favourite fruits have vanished from the scene...but some not-so favourite ones before, are becoming my favourites now :-)  Pear is one amongst them. Yes, they are crunchy, sweet and juicy but they just cannot beat the Bing Cherries! Surprisingly, one of my friends, kind of hates cherries. Umm..so maybe it depends from person to person.
Crumbles are a firm favourite with us. I have made a Cherry crumble before and Jobin was hooked on to it. Then I made an Apple crumble which never appeared on the blog because it was a big hit amongst Jobin and his mom. We dug into the bowls like there was no tomorrow! :-)

Everytime I go near the produce section of our supermaket, I become very slow. I drag the cart along. Jobin sometimes seem to be lost ,thinking why do I behave like that everytime 'all of a sudden'...you know like the 'slow motion' scenes in movies? Hehe,I love  looking at all the colourful fruits that we get here and those we never get in India. I somehow enjoy taking a stroll around the fruits and thinking about what I can possibly do with each one of them...but in reality, it rarely happens because I can get very lazy at times and eat the fruit as it is! :)

This time, it was Pear & Chocolate Crumble for our 'Sweet Punch' bake for the month of December.We all were given a recipe but I chose to go with my own measurements. It is so perfect for these cold days that we are having right now in Minneapolis.We need something warm to keep us warm...be it dessert or clothes!

PEAR & CHOCOLATE CRUMBLE
My own recipe
Serves-2

Ingredients:
2 pears, peeled, cored and chopped into 1" pieces
Sugar to taste
1 tsp lime juice
3 oz milk chocolate, roughly chopped

For the crumble:
1/2 c all purpose flour
1/2 c oatmeal, crushed by hand
Sugar to taste (use light/dark brown sugar, if available)
1 tbsp cold unsalted butter, diced
2 tbsp almond slivers, broken up

Method:
Pre- heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4.Grease 6 oven proof ramekins.
In a bowl, mix together the chopped pears,sugar,lime juice and half the chocolate.Divide them equally among the ramekins,spooning over any remaining juice.
For making the crumble,mix together flour and butter and rub it with your fingertips till it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in rest of the ingredients.
Spoon the crumble over the pears. I always like to make extra topping,so that there is a good crunch all the way.
Transfer the crumble to a baking sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Verdict: Jobin eyebrows shot up as he took the first bite.I closed my eyes and enjoyed the chocolate and pear combo...
In Jobin's words,' It was a very yummy dessert!' :) As always,we loved the crumble, maybe a bit more this time...because of chocolate!

I am sending this dessert as an entry to Monthly Mingle- Chocolate Extravaganza hosted by myself :-)