Crisp, crumble, buckle, grunt, cobbler…I’m getting better at knowing what’s what, but this is a confusing food genre. No matter, I’ve come to love them all, which is something that I would never have thought I’d be saying if you asked me a few years ago.
It used to be all about cake, cookies, and other pastries for me. Sure, I enjoyed apple or pumpkin pie at the holidays, but during the rest of the year I wouldn’t look twice at a pie or any other fruit dessert if I had a choice between that and a chewy chocolate chip cookie or a piece of yellow cake with buttercream frosting. I think that the idea of a fruit-based dessert gave my sense of texture the heebie jeebies. I didn’t like the thought of biting into wonky, plump bits of cooked fruits. Weird, I know. But, thankfully, I’ve gotten over this neurosis and am trying my best to catch up on all of the years that I lost by thinking that I disliked fruity desserts.
These individual berry crisps are delicious and allowed me to use some of the wonderful blackberries that were on sale at the supermarket this week. I mixed them 1 to 1 with blueberries and ended up with a dessert that I’m sure I’ll be making again. I love the flexibility of desserts like this. Make the recipe half a dozen times, and you can use half a dozen different combinations of berries and fruits, creating a new dessert every time.
FOR THE TOPPING
Ingredients
3/4 cup whole wheat (or all purpose) flour
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
FOR THE FILLING
adapted from Individual Berry Crisps by Alton Brown
Note: If you’re using frozen berries, thaw and drain them before you mix them together for the filling.
12 oz. fresh or frozen blackberries
12 oz. fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup agave nectar (or 1/2 cup white sugar)
1 Tbsp. cornstarch (if using agave nectar, add an additional teaspoon of cornstarch)
1/2 cup crisp topping
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare six individual 8 oz. ramekins (a 9×9 inch pan should work, if you don’t have ramekins) by spacing them evenly on a sheet pan that has been covered with parchment paper.
2. Make the topping: Combine the flour, oats, pecans, brown sugar, white sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Once thoroughly mixed, add cubed butter and work the mixture with your fingers until it becomes a crumbly mixture that holds together if you squeeze it together in your hand. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. Make the filling: In a second mixing bowl, stir berries, agave nectar (or sugar), cornstarch, and 1/2 cup of the crisp topping together until thoroughly combined.
4. Divide the berry mixture evenly between six ramekins and top each with roughly half a cup of the crisp topping. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the topping is browned and the fruit is bubbling. Cool for at least 15 minutes and serve.
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