Apple, Cranberry, Pear with Gingersnap Cookie Crumble

As colors fade and slip away from the landscape, trees stand bare.
We rely on words to keep the memory alive. 
Holly Mathers-Shuemaker

The Colors live
Between back and white
In a land that we
Know best by sight.
But knowing best
Isn't everything,
For colors dance
And colors sing,
And colors laugh
And colors cry-
Turn off the light
And colors die,
And they make you feel;
Every feeling there is
From the grumpiest grump
to the fizziest fizz.
And you and you and I
Know well
Each has a taste
And each has a smell
And each has a wonderful
Story to tell...

ending page from Hailstones and Halibut Bones by Mary O"Neill

Pear, Apple, Cranberry with a Gingersnap Cookie Crumble 
An irresistible autumn dessert that stands out with seasonal fruits baked with a gingersnap  cookie crumble crust.
Cook's notes: Anjou and Bartlett pears are the best for baking because they remain firm and smooth when cooked. When choosing pears for baking, select those that are firm but not rock hard, have a good fragrance, and are smooth and unblemished with stems still attached. Autumn is the best season for Anjou and Bartlett pears.
Recipe adapted from smittenkitchen.com
Ingredients:
Crumble

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 TB. dark brown sugar
• 1 cup gingersnap crumbs (about 16 cookies) 
• 1/2 tsp. apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice mix
• 1 tsp. Saigon cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 5 TB.butter, melted and cooled

Filling

• 3-4 large ripe pears (I used Anjou) peeled, halved, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 3 Granny Smith apples. peeled and cut into small chunks
• 1- 1/2 cups fresh cranberries ( if using frozen no need to thaw) 
• 1 TB. lemon juice
• 1 TB. grated lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. Saigon cinnamon
• 2 TB. cornstarch

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350°degrees.
• Use a cuisinart to crumble cookies, then proceed with crumble part of the recipe.  
• Stir together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, gingersnap crumbs, spice mix cinnamon and salt. Stir in the melted butter until large crumbs form.
• Place crumb mixture in freezer while cutting up apple and pears for about 20 minutes.
• In a 2 quart baking dish or a 9 x 9 glass baking dish, mix the pears, cranberries, apples, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar, cinnamon and cornstarch together then toss it with the fruit mixture in the pan.
• Sprinkle the gingersnap crumble over the fruit. Set the crumble dish on a foil-lined baking sheet. 
• Bake the crumble for about 45 minutes or until it is a shade darker and you see juices bubbling through the crumbs.