BERRY CRISP (gluten-free, vegan)

I needed a gluten and dairy free dessert to bring to a pot luck and researched variations online. I came across one from the ever talented Minimalist Baker which seemed good so I combined it with a prior recipe I had for a peach and strawberry crisp. It is incredibly easy, incredibly tasty and perfectly set up to serve warm after a meal if desired. Bonus - extra crumb topping is delicious on so many things, including just eaten off a spoon. While tweaked and honed in on my preferences for the ultimate crisp, it is still very similar to the Minimalist Baker version to be sure to give credit where due!

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BERRY CRISP

Adapted from Minimalist Baker
(gluten free, vegan)

Ingredients

Filling

2 Tablespoons maple syrup (a little more if your fruit is on the tart side)

1.5 Tablespoons corn starch or arrowroot powder (gluten free if keeping gluten free)

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

4 -6 cups mixed berries (I used blueberries and strawberries)

Topping

1 2/3 cup organic oats (gluten free if keeping gluten free)

1 cup of hazelnuts

1/2 cup coconut sugar (regular sugar would work fine as well)

2/3 teaspoon salt (I always use Celtic Sea Salt)

4 Tablespoons coconut oil (if not keeping vegan, you could swap for unsalted butter)

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. (or not of you are just preparing the dessert to be cooked later)

Prepare the topping:

Toast the hazelnuts in a dry pan for just a few minutes on low heat. Watch them carefully. Set aside.

In a food processor, combine 2/3 cup of oats and the 2/3 cup of hazelnuts and pulse until combined and relatively uniform. Add the sugar, salt, coconut oil and maple syrup. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the remaining 1 cup of oats and hazelnuts and pulse a few more time to combine but not pulverized the new oats and nuts. This way you get a few different textures in the topping, which adds a lot. If your coconut oil is very firm, you should warm it. If it is semi-soft, you can still work it.

Once well blended but still chunky (see photos) set aside. If preparing ahead of time and using later (and/or traveling with it) put the topping in a container. A large mason jar works well.

Prepare the filling:

Wash berries and dry berries. Lay them out on a clean towel to dry off a bit. If using strawberries, cut into smaller pieces. Place in a large mixing bowl and add lemon juice and maple syrup. Give a light toss. Then sprinkle with corn starch or arrowroot powder, which will help thicken the fruit juices into a luscious sauce. Place into a deep pie dish or 9x9 ceramic baking dish. Set aside until ready to bake. If not baking right away, cover with foil or a beeswax wrap.

Assemble and bake:

Decide when you are going to bake it, and be sure to preheat the oven so it is at 350°F when it is time to put the crips in the oven. I like to time it so it goes in just before we sit down for dinner so it comes out pipping hot around when we’re done with dinner. When ready to bake, sprinkle a thick layer of topping over the berries in the baking dish and bake for 35 - 45 minutes until a little golden brown on top and you can see the fruit juices bubbles at the edges. Let sit for about 10 minutes (longer is fine) out of the oven to cool slightly.

Enjoy … ideally with some good quality vanilla ice cream!

Notes:

• Always buy organic if you can, especially important with strawberries as they are top of the dirty dozen list.

• This makes a lot of topping. If you want a lot of the crisp, you will have it. Or you can enjoy the leftovers another time straight on ice-cream, in yogurt, on some roasted vegetables or right off a spoon. The topping really is super tasty on its own.

ROASTED CARROTS WITH PARSLEY MINT YOGURT SAUCE

Easter 2018 - Buffet Brunch for a large crowd

Carrots cut smaller and roasted off earlier in the morning, waiting until it is time to assemble the dish just before brunch time

Here's an easy way to elevate your carrot dish. Simply roasted carrots dressed up with some fresh parsley, mint, lemon yogurt sauce and feta - an excellent side dish or vegetarian dish (I would add some toasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds if a vegetarian main). An extra bonus is that the carrots can be room temperature which eases the "having everything ready (and hot) at the same time" part of cooking a meal - It would be excellent as a BBQ side to add some light freshness in contrast to grilled meats. Another reason I love this recipe is that it is so easy to scale up for a larger group - just get whatever amount of carrots you think would be good for your group and scale the rest up accordingly. If you need to, split the carrots across 2 baking sheets so they are not too crowded. The sauce is even delicious on raw carrots! 

April 4 2018 - We just served this dish over the weekend at the the Easter egg hunt and brunch we hosted for our neighbors up at our place in the Catskills and were so please with how it turned out! This time I cut the large carrots into smaller long pieces (see photo) so that there were a better serving size for the larger group and I liked it even more than keeping the carrots their full length. It will be my go to method from now on. I would now recommend this dish even more whole heartedly (if that was possible) for a delightful side dish to any meal. You can make the sauce hours ahead of time, you can prep the carrots the day before, it can be served with the carrots at room temperature so they can be roasted off earlier in the day and left on the counter until you are ready to assemble. So it is a really tasty dish that is a breeze to pull together and you don't have to worry about keeping it warm. Oh, and it presents beautifully. What more can you want from a recipe? 

Prepped Carrots, leaving whole

Easter 2016 - sit down meal for 6 people

Roasted Carrots with Parsley Mint Yogurt Sauce

Martha Stewart Living recipe published in the April 2016 issue with my added notes and photos.

Ingredients 

1 1/2 pounds thin carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise if thick
1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley, plus optional whole leaves for serving
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh mint, plus optional whole small leaves/chopped larger leaves for serving
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse salt

Shopping notes:  You should buy carrots with their tops still on, they will be sweeter. Look for pretty bunches for a pretty end result! Also, most of the nutrition in carrots is closest to the outer edges. If you by baby carrots, you loose a lot of that.

Directions

Carrots

Preheat oven to 450°F. 

On a rimmed baking sheet, toss carrots with olive oil to coat and season with salt. Roast carrots, until tender and beginning to brown slightly, about 20 - 25 minutes. Flip carrots once in the middle of roasting. Let cool.

Sauce

Process 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1/3 cup chopped  parsley, 2 tablespoons chopped mint, 2 teaspoons lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to a fine paste in a food processor. Add yogurt and puree. The sauce will be luscious in texture and the color will exclaim spring and summer. 

Serving

Spread some of the yogurt sauce on the a platter, place carrots on top of the sauce. Sprinkle with feta if desired, but the dish is really great even without it. If you wish, drizzle with a little more olive oil (I don't think this is necessary). If you saved any small fresh parsley and/or mint leaves, sprinkle them on top. Put some of the yogurt sauce in a small condiment bowl with a little spoon so your guests can add more sauce to their carrots right on their plate. Serve!