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Cherry Crisp with Lime and Vanilla

Prep Time

20

Cook Time

45 minutes

Serves

4-6

Ingredients

  •  4 cups cherries, pitted
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch 
  • 3 tablespoons lime juice 
  • Zest from 1 lime 
  • 1/4 cup cherry preserves 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla paste 
  • 1 cup rolled oats 
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar 
  • 1/4 cup turbinado sugar 
  • 1/2 cup flour, cold and cut in to small 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 stick butter 
  • 1/2 tsp salt 
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Steps

1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl combine cherries with cherry preserves, vanilla paste, lime juice and zest, and cornstarch. Stir to combine and fully dissolve cornstarch. Set aside.

2

In a separate bowl combine oats, cinnamon, sugars, flour, and salt. Stir to combine and then add in cubes of butter. With your hands or a pastry cutter break up the pieces of butter and work into the oat and flour mixture until everything is fully combined. You want a texture that is almost a paste but able to crumble as well.

3

Grease a small 6×9 inch baking dish with butter. Add in the cherries then top with the crumble. Bake uncovered for 40-45 mins or until the cherries are bubbling and the topping is golden brown. Serve with warm with vanilla ice cream.

Stone fruits are the star of summer desserts.

I don’t know about you, but baked stone fruit and vanilla ice cream are just the best combination in the world. When they are at their peak in late summer, cherries just can’t be beat. One thing I will say about a crisp specifically, is that a lot of times I want a thicker sauce than you can achieve with sugar and cornstarch alone. This recipe is the answer to that.

If there is one type of product that I use more than anything in my recipes (both savory and sweet) it’s jams, preserves and jellies. They just make sauces amplified with the flavor of the fruit itself. Enter cherry preserves. This cherry crisp is what you want a cherry crisp to be. Thick and reduced cherry deliciousness, but with the bite and integrity of the fresh fruit maintained. It’s floral from the lime zest and the depth of the vanilla paste balances the tartness perfectly. As for the crumble topping, it took me a while to get the ratio of flour to butter and sugar just right. I think a lot of times the amount of flour is just too much in many of the fruit crisp recipes I have tried in the past. No matter how long you bake, if the ratio isn’t right it’s going to have a floury after taste. This one is it! Perfect texture and flavor to top over these amazing cherries. Give this one a try and make sure you get a really great vanilla ice cream with visible vanilla bean caviar!

Try not to eat all of the cherries before you bake this crisp!