Potluck Protocol

I'm attending a potluck dinner party tomorrow evening. The hostess requested on the Evite that we respond with what we intend to bring to encourage variety in the offerings.

Because I am the way I am (indecisive, self-deprecating, noncommittal), I répondez with the following:

Yay! I will attempt to bake something (so that I can cross #19 off my 30 before 30 list) but, depending on what kind of disaster that turns into, I may end up just picking up something on the way.

A few days later, a kind and encouraging email arrives in my inbox from a fellow attendee:

Hi Janet!
I couldn't help but notice your comment on Jen's invite that you need to bake something for a potluck. And, I want to support you in your 30 Before 30 list, too. Below is a go-to recipe that I've been making for almost ten years. It's from the "Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cooking Basics" (but I got it from a reprint in the LA Times, in 2001) and it always wins rave reviews!
Yours,
Remy

(Followed by a delicious-sounding and seasonally-appropriate recipe for Apple-Pear Crisp, which I'll post after the jump.)

So, I'm like, SWEET! No need to break out the old Betty Crocker or spend time surfing the Internet. I'm all for things I need just arriving in my inbox when I mention a need. (At this time, I will just go ahead and point out other needs I have and, were these items to appear in my inbox, I would be eternally grateful: an amazing business associations outline, a job offer, a gift certificate for a Banana Republic pants suit, an invitation for an all-expenses paid weekend getaway, tickets to Elton John in concert).

I'm all set to whip up an Apple-Pear Crisp, but when I take a look at the recipe to make a shopping list for the ingredients, I realize I have questions. I pop off a quick email to Remy, in which I reveal my cluelessness about baking for potlucks:

OMG! What do I DO about the fact that this dish is best served WARM? Do I bring it unbaked to Jen's house and use her oven? Or do I bake it before I arrive and, if so, won't it get cold before dessert time? Ack! So much for a "Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cooking Basics," huh?

Remy responded immediately, suggesting that I just reheat it at Jen's after cooking it at my place (duh) (Remy doesn't say "duh" in response, that's my own addition. She actually said that my reading the recipe ahead of time was an "expert move." Ha!).

In any event, after verifying with the hostess that I can reheat in her oven (is it proper potluck protocol to assume you can use the oven or should you call ahead?), I am going to make the crisp, cooking it in advance and popping it in the oven for a few to re-warm it when dessert time rolls around. I'm hoping for a successful crisp.

If you aren't as dramatic as I am, you can probably handle The Complete Idiot's Apple-Pear Crisp. I mean, really.

Apple-Pear Crisp

Active Work Time: 25 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 1 hour

From “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cooking Basics.”

1/2 cup chopped almonds or pecans
3 large Granny Smith apples
2 large firm ripe pears
2 to 3 tablespoons brandy or dark rum, optional
3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Vanilla ice cream, for serving, optional

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and toast them until they’re fragrant and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Set them aside.

Peel and core the apples and pears and cut them into 1-inch chunks. Spread the fruit evenly over the bottom of a shallow 2-quart baking dish. If desired, sprinkle the fruit with the brandy or rum.

Combine the flour, granulated and brown sugars, lemon zest, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Using a pastry blender, two knives or your fingers, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. Mix in the nuts.

Spread the topping evenly over the fruit. Bake the crisp until the fruit is tender and the crust is lightly browned, 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm, if desired, with vanilla ice cream.

6 servings. Each serving: 416 calories; 105 mg sodium; 41 mg cholesterol; 22 grams fat; 54 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 3.62 grams fiber.

Variation: Add half a cup of fresh, rinsed cranberries to the apple-pear mixture before spreading on the sugar topping. Or, for a summer crisp, substitute peaches and nectarines for the apples and pears.