A Fruit Crisp Recipe in the Works

This post focuses more on the experimentation aspect of the blog. I debated whether I was being too premature in posting this recipe, since it is still in the works, but I decided to put it up anyway for a few reasons: 1) I do like how this crisp tastes, even if I end up modifying it later; 2) this is the perfect season for buying fresh fruit from the farmers' market; 3) it is easy and great for parties or potlucks; and 4) I'm hoping some of you will be inspired to experiment at home and drop me comments with suggestions!

The base recipe is from Allrecipes.com, called "Apple Crisp IV" by Rhonda. Rhonda, wherever you are, all I can say is that this is one awesome crisp, and your commenters have made great and helpful suggestions.

I first stumbled across this recipe when I needed to bring something to a friend's house for a dinner party. She is a wonderful friend from law school and she throws great shindigs, so I wanted to bring something up to the task. Unfortunately, about an hour and a half before her party started, I realized I hadn't been to the store and that I hadn't started to make anything - yikes! Thank you Rhonda et al for bailing me out.

I think this recipe would work well for any kind of fruit. I've made it with apples twice now, but I think blueberries or mixed berries would be a winner, too. I've also got a bag of locally grown peaches at home, courtesy of my neighborhood Whole Foods (seriously, peaches for 99 cents a pound? How could I resist!), and I think they might be making their way into a crisp soon enough.

I like this recipe because it has the traditional crumbly, cinnamon-y taste, but the nutmeg in it gives it a special, unexpected tang. I think I might have to work out ways to add a little more texture...I'm thinking of mixing in the oatmeal separately, after I've combined the other ingredients in the food processor. Ideally I will post an update later with modifications, so keep your fingers crossed!

Fruit Crisp

Yields: Easily feeds 6-8 people

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. flour
2 c. rolled oats
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. non-dairy butter (Earth's Balance Vegan Buttery Spread is my fave)
Fruit of choice (Just eyeball it - you can either be fruit heavy, or go heavy on the crust...I usually do the latter. For example, I find four apples to be enough, but Rhonda's gang has used as many as 2 quarts)

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients, except butter and fruit. Cut in butter. -OR-

If you are inept like me with cutting in butter, combine flour, oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, and butter in food processor, until well mixed. You may need to pulse it a few times and mix in the butter occasionally until well combined.
3) Prepare your fruit of choice. For berries, I'd wash them and make sure they are dry. For apples and peaches, I'd remove the skin and core or pit, and then cut them into thin slices.
4) Pat half of the crust into a nongreased 9x13 pan. Layer the fruit on top of the crust, filling in all available gaps. Take the remainder of crust and crumble it on top.
5) Put in the oven; I think the bake time will depend on the fruit you are using. For apples, I usually need around 53-55 minutes, but I would imagine berries could be ready in closer to 40-50 minutes. Just keep an eye on it and wait until the fruit is soft.
6) Scoop and serve! I prefer it hot, but it also works at room temperature and is great straight out of the fridge as a leftover.