Apple Blueberry Cranberry Spice Crisp

If there was a "christmas crisp recipe" this would be it in my little corner of the world. Besides or maybe instead of the cinnamon rolls this would be another great Christmas morning treat for the whole family. It is a great make ahead and bake off or warm the morning of Christmas. Not only does the smells of spice, apple, and berries fill your Christmas-filled home, but the warmth of the dish brings out all the Christmas spirit feelings. Maybe better than any "christmas spirit" candle or essential oil, because you get to eat it after :)

To be honest, I was kind of over fruit crisps for a while. It is such an easy GF dessert, so over the past decade I have had my fill of hundreds of delicious bubbling crisps. They are so easy to throw together with fresh or frozen fruit and you can make it a little special with some spice or some fresh zest or even herbs. But this one... I fell in love all over again. I didn't actually have a serving until the day after I baked it, and when I did... I just stopped and sat down and enjoyed it as breakfast with a good cup of tea. It really surprised me at it's warmth and comfort it offers on a cold winter day.

There are a few tricks to make a great crisp. One is to make sure the fruit going in if it is the same or a variety is that they are all cut in similar size, and I would say that bite-size or even smaller is best. So for this crisp I have frozen blueberries from last summer, cranberries from a few weeks ago and apples... So I cut the apples the same size of the large berries- so that all pieces are the same size and it melds and mixes well.

I also think adding the spice to the fruit is the best, and no spice to the topping. Kinda like a biscuit topping and the surprise flavor is inside. Those are just some of my favorite tips to making a great fruit crisp. If you make enough crisps, you find the little secrets that you love most to make it special every time. This one is made special with the flavors of orange, cloves, nutmeg, and the berries with the apples. A great combo that I am so glad found its way to my home this snowy Christmas season!

Apple Blueberry Cranberry Spice Crisp Recipe
{gluten, dairy, egg, nut, seed and soy-free, vegan options}

4 heaping cups of finely chopped fresh apple pieces without skins
3 cups of frozen blueberries
1 cup of frozen or fresh cranberries
1 cup of unsweetened applesauce
1 organic orange to get 1/2 cup of fresh juice and 2 TB of fresh orange zest
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1/4 cup of pure honey (or more maple syrup to be vegan)
1/2 cup of water
2 TB of tapioca starch
pinch of sea salt
2 TB of pumpkin pie spice blend (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves mix)

Mix all of the above ingredients in a large 9x13 glass pyrex pan very well with a spoon or with your hands. Press down if need be to fit the crisp crumble evenly on top.

2 cups of GF rolled oats
1/3 cup of tapioca starch
1/3 cup of potato starch
1/3 cup of rice flour
1/2 ts. of sea salt
3/4 cup of coconut palm sugar
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1/3 cup of organic coconut oil
1/3 cup of organic palm oil shortening

Mix the above ingredients together and you get a crumbly oat toping to sprinkle over top the fruit in the Pyrex pan. Try to evenly spread over the fruit and then put the pyrex pan on a baking sheet for extra coverage if there happens to be any juicy fruit drippage from the pan- it will not fall on your oven floor and start burning. Bake for 45-50 minutes in a 350 degree oven- or when the crust is golden brown and crispy and the fruit is bubbling and perfectly soft and sugary. Let it cool! Just for 10-15 minutes so that it is not scalding hot- it is best not scalding, but still very warm if you ask me. You can eat just as for breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert, or add some coconut whip topping or ice-cream to get all fancy.

Hope you stay warm and enjoy!

Happy baking and much love, xoxo