Fruit Crisp (vegan + gf options)
Template recipe
My Dinner Party newsletter today suggests apple fruit crisp with crystallized ginger as the end to a cozy winter meal. That’s just one variation on this recipe that you can really change to match the season, your mood, and your pantry.
Yield: 8 servings
INGREDIENTS
Core ingredients
Filling
2 lbs fruit
apples — peeled, cored, and cut into slices
plums/peaches/pears/nectarines — sliced
fresh or frozen blueberries/blackberries/raspberries/sliced strawberries/halved cherries
IF USING BERRIES: 2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup white sugar
Topping
2 cups rolled oats (old-fashioned or quick-cooking)
1 cup AP flour
1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces, or 1/2 cup refined coconut oil, softened enough that you can mush it with your fingers
Optional Ingredients & Ideas
To mix in with the fruit
1 tablespoon lemon juice or a nice vinegar (channel Emily’s vinegar energy)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla extract
To add when you mix together the toppings
Substitute 1/2 of the AP flour for whole wheat / rye / buckwheat. If you want to make the whole thing gluten-free, you can use a mix of buckwheat flour and oat flour (pulse an additional cup of oats in the food processor)
1/2 cup chopped crystallized ginger (this would work well with apples, less well with berries)
Additional spices like nutmeg, cardamom, allspice or ground ginger
1/2 cup nuts (sliced almonds, chopped pecans/walnuts)
1 cup granola (reduce the oats by half and optionally reduce the sugar)
1/4 cup dried coconut
1/2 cup crushed pretzels
METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F
2. Make the filling
In a large bowl, mix the fruit and sugar. Mix in cornstarch if using berries or another fruit that is particularly wet. Put it into a 9-inch rectangular baking dish.
3. Make the topping
Mix together the oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and any additional ingredients you’re using. Add the butter or coconut oil and work it into the dry ingredients with your fingers, until only small bits remain. Spread the topping evenly over the fruit in the baking dish.