We’re not really a family that does desert with meals unless it’s a party or some sort of celebration. But, there are a few things we’re partial to anytime, fresh fruit and ice cream being two of those.
This time of year, I’m subject to the urge to combine the two in a kind of yumminess that’s second to none. I make a fruit crisp and serve it warm, topped with ice cream. My own little slice of heaven!!!
It’s a dessert that’s simple to put together from almost whatever fruit you happen to have, a crumb topping, and voila`!!! Well, it should be. It’s become a bit problematic in our house since my partner, Larry, has a wheat allergy and I’m diabetic but we both love it, so I needed to find a way to make it that we could both enjoy it. It’s still full of yummy goodness, and it’s problem free for Larry, relatively guilt free for me.
And the best part is, people who don’t have our “limitations” love it too!!!
Roxx’s Fruit Crisp
- Start with about 6 – 8 cups of cut up fruit.
I used to make this with the fruit that was getting a bit too ripe in the fridge, using apples, of course, but also pears, nectarines, peaches, plums, I’ve even used pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, cranberries. In short, any combination of fruit that makes you happy.
- Sprinkle that fruit with the following spices: 2 tbsp cinnamon, 2 tsp cardamom, 2 tsp all spice, 1 tsp cloves, 1 tsp nutmeg and 1 tsp ginger
- Add the juice of a lemon and stir well to combine, pour into a baking dish then set aside
- To make the topping, start with about four cups of corn flakes and crush them well (I don’t like the texture you get by using corn flakes crumbs out of a box so I always start with corn flakes and do it myself)
- Now here it gets a bit tricky; there’s a cracker we buy for Larry called Nut Thins, they contain no wheat so he can eat them, and they have crushed pecans in them, are a bit salty and a bit sweet at the same time, but lacking those, you can use another cup of cornflakes. I crush up enough Nut Thins to make about another cup and mix it into the corn flakes.
- Add the same spices that you added to the fruit, and then add about 1/3 cup of melted butter, you want to moisten the crumbs but not have them “glom” together too much.
- Sprinkle evenly over the top of the fruit till it’s well covered (you may end up with some crumb left but it freezes well)
- Dot the top with more butter and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until it fills up the house with its lovely aroma and you can see it bubbling all around the edge of the baking dish.
- Serve warm with ice cream.
Easy peasy . . .
You’ll notice I didn’t add any kind of sugar. That was done purposely. No wheat for Larry and no sugar for me, makes it relatively guilt (as long as I don’t have ice cream) and problem free for both of us. I discovered this quite by accident really. I was making the crisp once, while a friend was in my kitchen making brunch for us and I literally forgot to add the brown sugar to either the fruit or the crumb. We ate it and discovered we didn’t miss it at all, so it became the “new” recipe.
Try it, I dare you!!!
TTFN!!!