LAMORINDA WEEKLY | Summer Fruit Crisp


Lauren's peachy-pear crisp Photo Susie Iventosch

Summer Fruit Crisp

I look forward to summer fruits all year long. Who doesn't like

warm fruit with a crumbly topping with vanilla ice "cream"?

Yields: 1 (9x12) pan or 2 quart round souffle dish-serves

6-10 people

INGREDIENTS

Filling

3 pounds of stone fruit

(nectarines, peaches, apricots, plums), 1 inch slices

1/2 cup agave nectar

1 teaspoon real vanilla extract

zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon tapioca starch or 2 tablespoons oat

or barley flour

Topping

1 cup oat or barley flour, sifted

1/2 cup date sugar or maple sugar or sucanat

(I substituted organic turbinado raw cane sugar)

1 stick vegan Earth Balance, cold or frozen and diced

zest of one lemon

1 teaspoon vanilla powder, optional

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds)

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash lemons and fruit with vegetable wash. Do you know how many people have handled that fruit? Trust me, you don't want to know...just wash it and rinse well with cold water! Slice fruit and put in a large bowl and add the rest of the filling ingredients to the fruit, stir well. Place fruit mixture into a 9x12 glass baking dish or a 2-quart round souffle dish or something equivalent-it can be a different shape, but the same size. Set fruit aside.

For the topping, place all ingredients into a food processor with the "S" blade (Sabatier chopping blade) and pulse until it is crumbly and the size of cherries. This can also be done with a pastry cutter in a bowl. Pour evenly over fruit and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the topping is golden brown and fruit is bubbling. Cool for one hour.

*Can prepare crisp ahead of time and freeze to bake at a later time. If frozen, increase baking time to approximately 1 hour.