Pear Pie with Gruyere

Just in time for the holidays a recipe that combines my favorite things - fancy cheese and fresh fruit.

1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ground ginger
2-3 tsp of cinnamon
2 tbsp flour or cornstarch (to thicken filling)
7-8 ripe pears, peeled and cored
juice from 1 lemon
2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (these are usually near the tubes of cookie dough at the grocery store)
1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Peel and core your pears. I use a potato peeler and then slice the pears and remove the core. Maybe one day I will get one of those fancy fruit corers. I think Bartlett (aka Williams) pears work pest for this pie, even though Bosc pears are my favorite variety for snacking. Cut the pears into 1-2 inch pieces and sprinkle with lemon juice.

Combine the dry ingredients and add them to the pears. Mix thoroughly. I have found that there is no such thing as too much cinnamon. To be honest, I never even measure it out. I just shake it on until I think there's enough.

Put one of the pie crusts into a 9-inch deep pie dish. Cut the extra dough off the edges. Normally, I would recommend making your own pie crust, but with apple or pear pie there is already so much prep work involved. Premade crusts significantly cut down on the prep time.

Pour the pear mixture into the dish, making sure to pile the pears higher in the center. Place the butter pieces on the pears and then cover with your second pie crust. Press the crust edges together and cut off the extra dough. You can use a fork (or other utensil) to decorate the edges of the dough. Cut a few slits in the top crust to vent the pie. I usually make five slits radiating from the center.

Sprinkle the grated Gruyere on top of the pie. Cover the pie very loosely with foil, place it on a baking sheet and bake it for 55-60 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes - just enough to turn the top crust golden brown.

Let it cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. It is excellent with vanilla ice cream. If you don't like Gruyere you can also use Edam or Swiss cheese. If you don't like cheese (how is that even possible) brush the top crust with milk and sprinkle white sugar on top of the pie before baking.