Fresh apricots are so rarely available in Canada that I almost always miss them when they show up. This week’s quick grocery shop resulted in these babies coming home with the other staples. Apricot recipes are favourites in this house, including a showstopper birthday cake, and a killer meringue layer mess that never lasts long.
Green buds beckon so easy crumble it is, a crunchy fruit bite to welcome my oldest daughter home from her first day on the summer job. Family dinners with young adults in the house are a kick. Spring is hectic enough so I’m up for grabbing the moments where I can. Did I say yet that a full house makes me about as happy as these trippy tulips?
If you love easy two-step recipes, this one’s for you. Bake up the topping on a free day and store in your freezer. It’s also great on yogurt. When you’re ready for a quick dessert, spread it over the fruit and pop it into the oven for a quick bake.
What you need:
for the crumble top:
1 ¼ cups rolled oats
¼ cup rice flour
¼ cup toasted flaxseeds, coarsely ground
⅓ cup raw sugar
½ teaspoon nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
for the fruit filling:
1½ pounds apricots, cut in half, stones removed
½ cup blueberries ( I used frozen wild berries at this time of year-let them thaw a little before adding in)
3 tablespoons honey
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon cornstarch
¼ cup lightly toasted slivered almonds
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract
What you do:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with parchment.
- Place the oats, rice flour, ground toasted flaxseeds, raw sugar, salt and nutmeg in a food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Add the cold butter pieces and pulse until the butter is evenly distributed throughout the grain mix and the mix is all crumbly.
- Spread the topping over the parchment-covered baking sheet in an even layer. Bake 10 minutes. Rotate the pan, stir the mixture, and bake another 10 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Can be made ahead and stored in freezer in ziplock bag.
- Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees.
- In a large bowl, toss together the apricots, honey, cinnamon, cornstarch, slivered almonds, vanilla and almond extract. Cover and let sit for 15 minutes
- Grease a 2 quart baking dish. Scrape the fruit and all of the juice in the bowl into the dish and spread the crumble topping over the fruit in an even layer.
- Bake 20 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is nicely browned. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. Add a dollop of yogurt, crème fraîche or vanilla ice cream if desired. Serves 6.
Baking notes: It is really worth it to toast both the flaxseeds and the slivered almonds. Both can be done in a baking sheet in a 375 F oven for about 5-10 minutes.
