Ingredients
- 6 ripe pears, peeled, cored, sliced
- 80 ml Quebec maple syrup (amber)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 120 g rolled oats
- 80 g all-purpose flour
- 70 g cold butter, cubed
- pinch of salt
Method
- Preheat oven to 190 °C. Toss pear slices with 40 ml maple syrup, lemon juice, cinnamon, and ginger; spread in a greased 20 cm baking dish.
- Combine oats, flour, and salt. Rub in cold butter until the mixture clumps. Drizzle remaining 40 ml maple syrup and toss to bind.
- Spread crumble topping evenly over pears.
- Bake 35–40 min until topping is golden and filling bubbles around the edges.
- Rest 10 min before serving warm.
Conversion and rationale
Original sweetener (classic version): 120 g brown sugar (split between filling and topping)
Conversion used: Replace 120 g brown sugar with 80 ml amber maple syrup (40 ml in filling, 40 ml in topping). Reduce no additional liquid as pears release enough juice. Bake at 190 °C (−15 °C vs. 205 °C classic) for even browning.
Why Quebec maple syrup: Pear's delicate sweetness is easily overwhelmed by brown sugar; amber maple syrup magnifies it with woody, caramel notes while providing real mineral content from Quebec sap.
General rule: 1 cup (250 ml) sugar ≈ 3/4 cup (180 ml) maple syrup; reduce liquids by 45–60 ml per cup of syrup and lower oven by 15 °C. Substitution calculator →