Easy, Vegan, and Totally Americana:
This Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp has it all – warm, sweet berries, with a crunchy oat and walnut topping, and a hint of maple syrup, that makes the most perrrfffeeeccttt masterpiece when topped with creamy vanilla coconut milk ice cream ….. swoon!
This obviously makes a great dish for the 4th of July by embracing our national colors in the form of a tasty treat. As an added bonus, you can mix the base of this Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp right in the pan! One less dish to clean makes me a happy lady.
I am a big fan of warm gooey desserts. My goal when making a fruit crisp like this is to make sure it’s not too liquidy at the bottom. To remedy that problem, I’ve added some almond flour and ground flaxseed to the berry mix, which thickens it up a bit. Another stipulation I have for fruit crisps is that they are crispy! What a crazy idea. A lot of the ones I’ve tried in the past are delicious but not quite crunchy enough on top, so for this recipe, I toasted my topping separately before adding it to the fruit. It provides the perfect crunchy texture to contrast the gooeyness of the fruit and ice cream, yay!
Why You Should Eat This Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp
Because it’s delicious! And because blueberries and cherries will help you look and feel younger. They’re bursting with antioxidants that fight premature aging, plus they are naturally sweet and full of fiber, so you are full and happy since your blood sugar isn’t skyrocketing. I used frozen cherries since pitting 2 lbs. of cherries would (to me) be a total pain, but you can totally use fresh of you want to!
Another highlight of this Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp is the delicious flavor of maple syrup, AKA – the nectar of the gods. It’s so damn good, and it actually has lots of minerals like zinc, which is great for your immune system, hair, skin, and nails (among other fancy benefits). Maple syrup also has a lower glycemic index than regular cane sugar, so it’s more gentle on your blood sugar. Choosing natural sweeteners like this, instead of processed ones like white sugar, is a really easy way to make recipes healthier.
How You Can Make It
Start out by preheating your oven to 375 degrees F. Mix all of your topping ingredients (oats, walnuts, sesame seeds, coconut sugar, sea salt, and maple syrup) in a bowl and pour onto a greased cookie sheet. Try to spread it out pretty well so that it’s not piled on top of itself – this helps to magnify the crunch factor. Pop the pan in the oven and set the timer for 15 minutes.
Next, you’re going to throw your frozen cherries, blueberries, cinnamon, flaxseed, almond flour, and remaining 3 Tbsp. maple syrup in a 9×13 inch greased baking dish and stir it all together. You can pop this in the oven as well, at the same temp, and bake for 40 minutes. Just make sure you set a separate timer so that you take the oat mix out after 20 minutes, while you’re berries keep baking.
Now listen up, you have two options of how to serve my Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp. One (which I did for these photos) is to keep the crunchy oat mix separate from the berry mix until you plate everything, and then sprinkle it over top. The other is to take the oat mix out of the oven 5 minutes earlier, sprinkle it evenly over the entire baking dish of fruit, and put it all back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Then you can just serve this Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp buffet style. Both are equally as delicious, just depends on how you’d like to display it! Either way, just bake the fruit for a total of 40 minutes.
While oats don’t naturally contain gluten, they high a high risk of being cross-contaminated with it. For this reasons I always buy the Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats, so that I know I’m safe. You can find them here on Amazon here:
[easyazon_link identifier=”B01FUI7GNK” locale=”US” tag=”foodtofeelgoo-20″]Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Organic Old Fashioned Rolled Oats [/easyazon_link]
Another fun thing from this post, that I highly recommend, is my most favorite baking dish, this Le Crueuset Stoneware one, which comes in lots of pretty colors:
[easyazon_link identifier=”B002YKMLBA” locale=”US” tag=”foodtofeelgoo-20″]Le Creuset Heritage Stoneware 12-by-9-Inch Covered Rectangular Dish [/easyazon_link]
(As a memeber of the Amazon Affiliates Program I do get a small commission when you purchase something through these links, but it’s at no extra cost to you!)
This Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp is sooo good with something creamy, whether it’s ice cream or coconut whipped cream, which you can find in my Citrus Salad and Ginger Chocolate Bark Recipe. As far as non-dairy ice cream goes, I’m a huge fan of the So Delicious Coconut Milk kind. BTW- I just finally bought an ice cream machine! So stay tuned for some fun new creations once I get that baby working.
Have a safe and fun Independence Day and I hope you enjoy this dessert with people you love! Leave me a comment and let me know what you think of this recipe.
Gluten-Free Blueberry Cherry Crisp
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 6-8 Servings
This is such a perfect summer dessert - a gooey combination of warm berries, crunchy oats, and walnuts, sweetened with delicious maple syrup. Top it off with some ice cream and you're golden! Pure summer bliss.
Ingredients
Crisp Topping
- 2 cups raw chopped walnuts
- 2 cups gluten-free whole rolled oats
- 2 Tbsp. white sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp. fine grain sea salt
- 2 Tbsp. coconut sugar (can sub raw sugar)
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
Berry Base
- 2 lbs. frozen dark sweet cherries
- 1 pint fresh blueberries, reserve a few for garnish
- 3 Tbsp. maple syrup
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 4 Tbsp. almond flour
- 2 Tbsp. ground flaxseed
- a few fresh cherries for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 F.
- Mix oats, coconut sugar, chopped walnuts, sesame seeds, sea salt, and 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp. maple syrup together in a medium bowl.
- Pour oat mix onto a greased cookie sheet, spread evenly, and bake for 15-20 minutes (see notes).
- Grease a 9x13 baking pan and add all your Berry Base ingredients: frozen cherries, blueberries, almond flour, ground flax, cinnamon, and 3 Tbsp. maple syrup. Toss together well so all ingredients are combined.
- Add baking pan to the oven with the oat pan and don't forget to set a separate timer. Bake the berries for a total of 35-40 minutes (again, see notes).
- Enjoy with some vanilla ice cream or coconut whipped cream and garnish with fresh blueberries and cherries.
Notes
You can serve this one of two ways:
- Serve the berries in individuals portions and add the oat mixture on top as you please - with this method you'll bake the oats for a total of 20 minutes and the fruit for a total of 40 minutes, separately.
OR
2. Bake the oats for a total of 15 minutes and remove from oven. Then, after baking the fruit for 35 minutes, spread the oats on top of the entire baking dish of berries, then place back in the oven for another 5 minutes and serve out of the dish.
Courses Dessert
I’m having people over for the 4th.this is what I’m going to serve for dessert. Thanks for the red white and blue idea
Yay! So glad you’re planning to make it ❤️ have a great holiday Adele!