#UseItUp Crisp
For this example I used pears to make a pear crisp to celebrate the beginning of fall!
As the rains finally begin to fall again on the west coast and sweaters migrate out of the backs of our closets, it feels like fall is truly upon us. While the end of summer is always a bit bittersweet, the coziness of fall cooking is always something to look forward to! From soups to squash there are so many savory flavors to explore, and the sweet baked goods are ready to show off their best stuff. My absolute favorite fall dish is an apple or pear crisp! This easy dessert is a great way to use up “tired” or imperfect fruit, and comes together so easily.
While I have spent the entire intro of this recipe gushing about fall, this crisp is fantastic to use up whatever fruit you have on hand during any season. It’s truly a go-to #UseItUp recipe in my arsenal. One of my more memorable examples of this was when my mom used this recipe to make a delicious blueberry-peach crisp with fresh peaches and frozen blueberries. We enjoyed it with vanilla ice cream on top by a river as the July sun went down and it was the perfect summer dessert!
You can opt for fresh or frozen fruit, or even a mix of the two. This is in the oven for so long and there is a lot of room for error, so the fruit will get fully cooked either way. In the recipe below we’ve noted all the places where you can substitute ingredients to use what you have or to add extra spices for more flavor. The butter can easily be replaced to make this a vegan recipe, and you can sub in gluten free all-purpose flour and make sure the oats are certified gluten free if you want to make this recipe gluten free as well!
Ingredients
Time: 1.5 hours
Filling:
4 - 5 cups of fruit
⅓ cup of sugar: adjustable depending on preference and sweetness of fruit
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract: optional depending on preference and sweetness of fruit
Topping:
⅓ cup all purpose flour
⅓ cup packed brown sugar
⅔ cup old fashioned oats
¼ cup melted butter, vegan butter, or coconut oil
¼ teaspoon cinnamon: add nutmeg or cloves for additional spice!
Optional: ¼ cup chopped nuts, flax seeds
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Grease 8 in. x 8 in. baking pan.
Peel and chop fruit of choice. Add ⅓ cup of sugar, a small pinch of salt, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Mix thoroughly and pour into the baking pan.
Mix flour, sugar, oats and any spices or nuts you’d like, in a large mixing bowl.
Melt butter in the microwave (or simply measure out your oil) and drizzle over dry ingredients. Mix well until the clumps are generally uniform in size.
Spread topping over the fruit in the pan and place the pan in oven for 45-60 minutes or until the topping is light brown.
Serve warm and add your favorite vanilla ice cream or whipped topping on the side for some extra sweetness!
Best Practices:
As always:
Try to bring your own reusable bags when you go shopping for these ingredients, and choose grocery stores or markets that are engaged in their community.
Choose storage containers that will help you make the most of your leftovers!
Opt for buying baking ingredients in bulk whenever possible. This can reduce plastic packaging and save money as well.
These ingredients have been chosen with several things in mind:
This recipe can be adjusted to use whatever fruit you have on hand or what is most in season. Eating seasonally can reduce the impact of your food.
This recipe is easily made vegan. Opting for plant-based foods whenever possible reduces your carbon footprint significantly. Even if you are not vegan full-time, going plant-based for as many meals as possible can have a large impact.
Did you enjoy this recipe? Let us know! If you really loved it, share it on social media and tag us (@groundedgrub), or, better yet, share it with your friends and family!
