Pear Crumble

Trying to convert most desserts to an oil-free, whole-grain version can be quite challenging.  By nature, dessert tends to be sweet (lots of calories), dense (processed grains), and usually include some sort of oil or fat that can't be easily replaced with another ingredient. For that reason, I don't indulge in them very often. But when pears came into season this Fall, I got the urge to try one of the fresh fruit desserts in this book.  I chose the "Pear Crumble" (page 473) and made a few adjustments to keep it on the healthier side.  I replaced the all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour, the ½ cup margarine with 2 tablespoons each of cashew butter and baby food prune puree, and I cut the sugar down by ½ cup. Sliced fresh pears are sprinkled with sugar and spice, topped with a crumbly mixture of flour, oats, and sugar, and baked in the oven until done.  Even with my adjustments, this was a wonderful dessert, not too sweet, not too fat, but still tasted very rich and satisfying.