Recipe Thursday: Froot Crisp (GF)

You read that right – that’s how we spell it around here. Why? ’cause it’s funnier that way, that’s why. Homeskooling is hilarious because you really get to not only see the ridiculousness of some of our learning systems but you also get to mess with your kids…take spelling, for instance – many words are spelled specifically because of their etymologies and historical uses (i.e. colonialism and imperialism, sometimes borrowing or common usage, but mostly power issues) and so the American English system is a (yes, also lovely) frustrating system of ‘just because’. I reject this in many ways and am also a stickler in others. However, froot and skool are ways I rebel (we also rebel frequently in renaming ‘brand name’ common usage things – booboo strips for band-aids – though I might go back to plasters on that one, tissue for kleenex, etc).

You’ve probably had our Froot Crisp. It’s my go-to GF dessert for gatherings. I’m sure you’ve had it good (with hand whipped cream) and forgotten (where it’s the last thing to go in the oven, and therefore the last thing remembered as it carmelizes into itself, resembling more like a chewy bar when finally found). It’s a recipe I make up everytime, based on a ‘crunch’ recipe from Ian Knauer. Crisps are nearly a regional thing (like ‘crunch’  or crumbles, cobblers, brown betty’s, sonkers, but not to be confused with things like buckles and brambles, etc – what’s yours?). Officially, I think because we use oats it’s a crunch…so I should probably fix my thinking on that…

You could skip the GF parts and just use flour and if you are savvy and need it to be vegan you could probably use vegan butter options (I bet coconut oil would work). You can also use berries, apples, plums, peaches – those sorts of things. This one is based on our frozen blackberries but I use fresh, canned, and frozen apples a lot, too, and Wyler’s blueberries (not NJ blueberries or pears or grapes – too big and wet, if you want to try, I would recommend adding another Tbsp of flour).

Froot ‘Crunch'(formerly Crisp)

Serves 6ish

Preheat oven to 375  degrees, with a rack in the middle.

for the froot
12-15 oz Berries (a whole bag of Wyler’s for us, including the snacking – the kid loves frozen berries), or froot (chunked or sliced, doesn’t really matter, if apples – i like to add dash cinnamon and allspice or ground ginger but not necessary)
1/4 Cane Sugar
2 Tbsp Brown Rice Flour
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice (optional but recommended for blueberries, apples, and peaches depending on tartness)
1/4 tsp Salt

Toss froot with sugar, flour, lemon juice (if using), and salt. Transfer to generously buttered 9″ pie or tart plate.

for the crunch
1/2 cup Brown Rice Flour (though sometimes I just grind up some oats and use oat or almond flour, too)
3/4 cup Oats (I use Maine Grains when I have them, they are really chunky old-fashioned oats, if you decide to use ‘quick cooking’ oats, I’d recommend a cup)
1/2 cup Brown Sugar (we don’t buy brown sugar so I use just under a 1/2c of cane sugar and 1 overfull Tbsp of molasses)
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1/2 tsp Salt (unless using salted butter, then just a dash)
1 stick Butter, cut into cubes

Stir together flour, oats, ‘brown’ sugar, vanilla, salt. Mix the cubes of butter in with your hands or pastry cutter (sometimes when I feel fancy, I add a little cinnamon here, too).

Scatter big clumps of crunch topping over the froot in pie plate.

Bake the crunch until the froot is bubbly, the crunch is set and browned in places, 25-35 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Serve with Vanilla Ice Cream or whipped cream (we use heavy cream with a Tbsp or 2 maple syrup, and 1tsp vanilla – whipped in the kitchen aid, unless you have/want muscles, then use whisk). Enjoy!