Simple Stone Fruit Crisp

I've been spending a lot of time at the farmer's market near my house on Friday evenings, and one of the vendors has the most incredible peaches, plums, nectarines, white nectarines, etc...all so fresh and ripe and delicious and cheap. So I've been making crisps like nobody's business, and here's how I generally go about it...(all of the measurements are approximate, it's mostly by hand and adjusted for the texture/moisture of the days' fruit)


Fruit Filling:
1 ½ or so lbs peaches, plums, pluots, nectarines (any combination)
Cornstarch
Lemon juice
Dash salt

Crumble Top:
Oats
Flour
Butter
Brown sugar
Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Pit fruit and slice into ½ inch chunks or ¼ inch thin slices. Toss into a bowl with cornstarch, lemon juice, 1T flour, 2T sugar, 1T brown sugar, and a dash salt. Stir with a wooden spoon and let sit in its juices.

In a separate bowl, combine 3T butter, ½ cup oats, 2T flour, 3T brown sugar, ¼ tsp salt, and a dash of cinnamon or clove if you’re so inclined. Sometimes I think it’s nice not to have any wintry spices and just let the fruits shine through…but that can depend on how fresh the fruit is, and what its accompanying at the table. Mash up the dry goods and butter with a fork til it’s all crumbly.

Grease a casserole dish and spoon two thirds of the fruit into it. Dot this layer with a few small pieces of butter (this will aid in congealing the juices as it cools later), then spoon in the rest of the fruit. Sprinkle the crumble mixture on top of the fruit, being sure it’s evenly spread out. Toss a little bit of extra oats on top and at edges for good measure (and extra crispness), and put the dish in the oven. Bake at 400 for about 25 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the fruit begins bubbling up around the oat mixture at the edges.


Variations:

Strawberry and peach go well together, and so do blueberries and nectarines. Chopped nuts are nice to add to the crumble top sometimes, and molasses dark brown sugar instead of regular brown sugar can add a depth and richness that’s quite nice. Hopefully I'll be heading to an apple orchard real soon and can get on some Apple Pie baking...maybe with a cheddar crust!