Quick and easy vegan. gluten-free crisp that has no refined sugar, Healthy Black Cherry Crisp.
Is there anything better than a good fruit crisp? Crisps are warm sweet goodness, that is even good cold if you manage to have any leftovers. They are also super quick and easy to make.
My favorite fruit is cherries. It always has been. When I was young, maybe 6, I would go with my family to an orchard during the cherry season and we would get big buckets of tart cherries and sweet cherries. My mom would freeze them and make pies. I would watch them get depitted. Is that a word? I remember wanting one of those machines, along with a cherry orchard.😁
I remember it was over an hour drive to the orchard, at least it seemed like it, and on the way home I would sit in the back seat with the buckets of cherries. It was my job to hand them up front to my parents as we enjoyed them on the way home. The conversation would always be a debate over which cherries were the best, tart or sweet. My favorite has always been sweet. This recipe is loaded with sweet cherries.
This recipe is gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and has no refined sugar making it pretty healthy when it comes to desserts. Don’t let that fool you though, it is still full of flavor and will satisfy your sweet tooth.
Most of the ingredients for this crisp are things that you most likely will already have on hand. One very important ingredient is the black cherries. I get mine at Costco and they are very sweet.
They are Happy Village Organic Dark Sweet Cherries and they are frozen. I use them for smoothies as well so this works great.
Using frozen cherries is defiantly the easiest option, as opposed to fresh, for this recipe and they work well. To use frozen cherries, place them in a small strainer set over a large bowl to collect the liquid while thawing. If they aren’t thawed enough they will retain their juice and make the crisp, well, not crispy. Make sure you start this in advance so there is time for them to thaw.
Reserve the liquid to use in smoothies or drinks. For example, you can combine some of the cherry juice with club soda and some crushed mint for a refreshing spritzer.
Preheat the oven to 350°F before you get started so that it can go right into the oven.
Prep time: 20 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes Serves: 4-6
Special equipment: a well-seasoned 10” cast iron skillet or an 8x8 or 9x9 baking dish
Ingredients:
4½ c. frozen black cherries, thawed and chopped
¼ c. maple syrup
½ t. ground cinnamon
½ t. ground allspice
¼ t. ground cloves
1 T. fresh thyme leaves
Topping Ingredients: 1 c. old-fashioned rolled oats ½ c. almond flour ½ c. pecans, chopped 1/3 c. maple syrup 5 T. coconut oil, melted, divided 1/8 t. table salt
Optional, to Serve: Fresh thyme sprigs, for garnish
Directions:
Place the top oven rack in the center position and pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
Combine thawed chopped cherries, maple syrup, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and thyme leaves in a bowl. Toss to combine and set aside.
Combine rolled oats, almond flour, pecans, maple syrup, three tablespoons melted coconut oil, and salt in a separate bowl and stir until oats are thoroughly coated and all ingredients are well combined. Set aside.
Lightly grease the cast iron skillet with the remaining coconut oil.
Pour the cherry mixture into the cast iron skillet and spread it into an even layer. Then spread the topping mixture into a thin even layer on top.
Loosely cover with aluminum foil and place into a preheated oven. Bake for 30 minutes then remove foil and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes. Bake until the top is nicely browned and the cherry mixture is nice and bubbly.
Remove from oven and set aside to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. You can serve it with the ice cream of your choice or keep it plain. Either way, it will be a big hit. Enjoy!
Let me know what you think. What is your favorite crisp?
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