A Fruit Crisp Recipe for Berry Season

You can be absolutely terrible at baking and still make this delicious dessert. I used marionberries and peaches, but feel free to mix up the varieties of berries and/or stone fruit in this or use all berries--it will be good almost no matter what!

Berry & Peach Crisp Recipe

Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened

For the filling:
3 cups peaches or nectarines (about 3-4 peaches/nectarines)
1 1/2 cups marionberries or blackberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
Zest of 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Put your oven rack in the middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Combine all the ingredients for the topping except for the butter (flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt) in a medium bowl and stir to combine.

3. Add the softened butter to the bowl of topping ingredients and use a pastry cutter, two forks, or your hands to mix the butter into the dry ingredients until incorporated. The mixture should have the consistency of small crumbly clumps that just barely stick together.

4. Combine the peaches or nectarines, sugar, cornstarch and lemon zest in a 2 quart baking dish and stir to combine, making sure the fruit is coated in the cornstarch. Spread into an even-ish layer. Put the berries on top in an even layer.

5. Scatter the topping all over the fruit, doing your best to make an even layer that covers the entire baking dish.

6. Put the baking dish on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake in the oven for 45-60 minutes. The filling should be bubbling and the topping should be golden brown but not burned. Allow to cool until warm but not hot. The filling will thicken as it cools. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Notes:

Feel free to try other combinations, like nectarines & blueberries. You could also add 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract or the insides of 1 whole vanilla bean to the filling, or 1/4 tsp of clove and/or nutmeg to the topping, but I like to keep it simple so I can really taste the fruit. Dang I love fruit!

These splatterware bowls and spoons from Crown Canyon are perfect for serving berry crisp.