Thursday, May 9, 2013

Cherry Berry Crisp



I found a great recipe for a fruit crisp.  I love crisps!  I love that they use oats instead of all white flour and also that you don't have any rolling out to do.

I had quite a bit of leftover cherry pie filling from making my Ditch the Box Cheesecake (we spoon it over each slice instead of layering the pie with it).  This recipe uses canned cherry pie filling so it worked terrific to use up the remainder of my pie filling.  I also had some frozen raspberries on hand, which I normally use for Homemade Yogurt Parfaits or breakfast smoothies.  I even tossed in a handful of strawberries I had in my fridge, all to equal the "2 cups frozen fruit" referenced in the recipe.

My family has a favorite frozen pie (that you bake).  Rarely do you find a store-bought pie that tastes super special, but Aldi has a Very Berry Pie that we REALLY love!  It combines blackberries, raspberries, and cherries.  The combination of berries and cherries in this recipe is very similar to that delicious pie.

I believe you could combine all sorts of frozen/fresh (but drained if fresh) fruits and even substitute the flavor of pie filling you use.  I love recipes that I can play around with - to sub in the fruits that I have on hand.

Here's how I made Cherry Berry Crisp AT HOME MY WAY:

Cherry Berry Crisp

Ingredients:

TOPPING:
  • 3/4 cup oats
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup cold butter/margarine (cut into pieces)
  • 1/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

FILLING:
  • 1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling (or blueberry or strawberry)
  • 2 cups frozen unsweetened raspberries (or fresh) (I also believe frozen blueberries, blackberries, peaches would be great.)
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon flour
Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spray an 8-inch square (or round) baking dish with cooking spray. 

In a large bowl, mix oats, 1/2 cup flour and brown sugar.  Cut in the butter.

I grate mine cold and it looks like this:


Cut in the butter/blend to combine.  I used a pastry blender but a fork would work well.  Stir in pecans (if using).

Mix the fruit/canned pie filling in a separate bowl and pour into the sprayed baking dish.



Sprinkle with the crisp topping.



Bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes or until mixture is bubbly and topping is golden brown. 


Enjoy!