Pear and Cranberry Gingersnap Crumble

Today marks one week to the signal of the beginning of the Christmas season. Black Friday. Black Friday starts at midnight for some stores in my area. I, for one, have never been a fan of black Friday. I might have gone this year, with stores opening at midnight, because I can do late night shopping trips. I don't think I will ever, ever, get up at three or four in the morning to go shopping. I would get up at three or four in the morning to bake, or something along those lines, but never to shop. I am not much of a shopper. I am a 'get in there, get it, and get out of there' kind of girl. My dad, on the other hand, is a shopper. What ever shopping gene is out there he got double and I got none. It used to make me crazy. I felt like there was no sense in looking at all of said item, if a perfectly good one was sitting right in front of me.
That said, I am looking forward to the baking I will be doing next week, especially since my mom and I are hosting our annual holiday boutique starting on black Friday. I will be furnishing hungry shoppers with biscotti, scones, savory breads, pumpkin loaves, and apple turnovers. Now that gets me excited.
I wanted to share a little treat I discovered over at my new favorite blog. I have made a very few small changes in the recipe, here it is in its entirety.

I made this for a little get together we had a few weeks ago, after I read about it on her blog. I fell in love instantly, and a star was born. We had quite a bit left over, so I got to enjoy it again and again. I also had to hold the food for over an hour and it held up quite well. This is absolutley perfect for a potluck or any similar get together you have coming up over the next week, or just make one and bring it to a neighbor or friend who doesn't have family around for the holidays.

I served mine with vanilla bean ice cream, the author suggests using freshly whipped cream.

Topping1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 cup gingersnap crumbs ( about 16 storebought cookies)
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon  salt
Pinch of  pepper
1/2 cup ( 1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling2 pounds (about 4 to 5) large ripe pears (I used Anjou) peeled, halved, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
3/4 cups dried sweetened cranberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Put cranberries in a bowl with 1 cup of water for about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Stir together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, gingersnap crumbs, ginger and salt. Stir in the melted butter until large crumbs form.
Drain the cranberries.
In a 1 1/2 to 2 quart baking dish, mix the pears, cranberries, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar and cornstarch together then toss it with the fruit mixture in the pan.
Sprinkle the gingersnap crumble over the fruit. Place in the oven and bake it for about 45 minutes, until the crumble is a shade darker and you see juices bubbling through the crumbs.