Cherry Crisp with Sliced Almonds - Gluten Free Baking

Cherry Crisp with Sliced Almonds is the perfect dessert. Especially after a hearty Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.

Fresh cherries are bountiful in the summer, and I happen to live 5 minutes away from several farm stands and the Farmer's Market. That's why I decided to make this cherry crisp using two different types of cherries (though you can use just one type).

Sweet and sour cherries are topped with a crispy oat crumble and sliced almonds, and served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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What's the difference between a cherry crumble and a cherry crisp?

Good question.

Honestly, I didn't know at first either and had to look it up.

The difference between a crumble and a crisp is that a crisp uses oats while a crumble is more of a cake batter topping. A crisp is, in fact, more crispy than a crumble. Therefore, I am all for the crisp. There is also such a thing as a cherry cobbler, which is like a soft cake batter on top.

Not only are cherries and almonds a match made in heaven, but the sliced almonds in the topping add even more crunch to our crisp topping. I think you're really going to enjoy this one.

Ingredients for Cherry Crisp:

For the Cherry Filling:

• Pitted and stemmed fresh or frozen cherries. Frozen cherries will produce more juice.
• Freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• Pure vanilla extract
• Granulated sugar
• Cornstarch. This is crucial for thickening up the cherry juice.

For the Oat Topping:

• Oats. Be sure to use certified gluten-free oats if dining gluten-free.
• Sliced almonds
• High quality gluten-free all purpose flour containing xanthan gum, or regular all purpose flour. I used Bob's Red Mill GF 1:1 Baking Flour (the blue bag).
• Light brown sugar
• Butter
• Ground cinnamon
• Salt
• Vanilla ice cream for serving, optional

How to Make:

• Rinse, pit, and de-stem the cherries, if using fresh. You may want to sit while doing this. It can take awhile. If you have a cherry-pitter; use it. If not, I used a cheese knife to dig underneath the pit. It worked well, just be careful not to cut yourself.
• Once the cherries are pitted, preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease an 8-inch square cake pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray, making sure to coat the bottom and up the sides. Set aside.

For the Cherry Filling:

• Add the cherries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, pure vanilla extract, and lemon juice to a large bowl. Stir until evenly coated. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and use a silicone spatula to spread it into an even layer.

For the Oat Topping:

• In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add the gf oats, gf all-purpose flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk until combined.
• Add in the melted butter, then stir until well-distributed.
• Fold in the sliced almonds.
• Sprinkle the oat topping evenly over the cherry filling. Smooth into an even layer.
• Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the cherries are bubbling and the oat topping is lightly browned. Tip: Place a cookie sheet under the cake pan before baking. That way, if cherry sauce bubbles out it will be caught by the pan underneath.
• Let the Cherry Crisp sit for 10-15 minutes at room temperature before serving.
• Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and/or whipped cream.

Equipment

You only need basic kitchen tools to make Gluten Free Cherry Crisp. I recommend:

• A cherry-pitter would make pitting the cherries so much easier
• An 8x8 baking dish is the perfect size for this recipe
• A silicone spatula is always a go-to whenever I bake anything

Notes on Gluten Free Cherry Crisp:

• Use a combination of sweet and sour cherries. I used half sweet cherries from the store and half Morello-type sour cooking cherries I bought from my local farm stand. I believe the sour cherries are called Early Richmond's, but if you know otherwise please do tell me.

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