A delicious Summery Peach Crisp that’s lightened- up with a Crisp Oat Topping with Oats, Pecans and Coconut. A smile with every bite guaranteed!
There is no better way to finish a summer supper better than a scoop of warm Peach Crisp with a dollop of home made ice cream. Mine is different. I have significantly reduced the fat and sugar – and came up with a vibrant, extraordinary dessert. So many crisp recipes are the same… “authors” on the web seem to be using the same recipe that became popular decades ago. I like to lighten-up recipes where I can to adjust for today’s style and changing taste buds. I love a luscious dessert, but not cloying, I prefer a slightly-sweet, yet healthy indulgence.
The changes… first choose the right peaches. I like yellow ones for baking… for the color (I love eating white donut peaches though.) Cook with peaches that just ripe and fragrant – look for a little pink-blushy color – you will end up with a crisp with this amazing yellow-fuchsia hue. Try to find peaches at a farmers’ market – how wonderful to bake with an ingredient you can say where and how it was grown. Supermarket peaches are often so cold when you pick them up – the markets are kept at frigid temperatures, and most feel like the peaches were picked unripe, and shipped in coolers. Ripen a bit indoors if using them. The variety I’ve used is “Garnet Beauty”.
Only three ingredients in the Peach-base: Sliced peaches, ground tapioca (or tapioca flour) and raw honey. Tapioca is extracted from the cassava root, it thickens nicely, and it’s appearance is glossy-clear, not cloudy like flour.
The topping has enough fat and sugar to obtain a very crisp exterior. Place oats in a bowl with a little virgin coconut oil, melted butter (I use organic), cinnamon, pure almond extract, chopped pecans, natural unsweetened coconut flakes, coconut palm sugar (low on the glycemic index and delicious), gluten-free flour, and a pinch of sea salt.
1 tablespoons of coconut oil and 2 tablespoons of butter are ample healthy fats in the topping- unlike some recipes which use 8 tablespoons or more butter. Try using coconut palm sugar in your baking in place of brown sugar – a wonderful pantry addition. Only 3 tablespoons will create a lightly sweetened topping.
I like to serve the crisp warm (although it’s a nice at brunch- time cold too!) with home made ice cream. I chose my Vegan Bing Cherry Ice Cream for it’s creamy texture to accompany the crisp.
Take a look at the recipe which was published last week on Mind Body Green- see below.
Enjoy this delicious, healthy-for-you dessert!
Karen
See the Recipe in Mind Body Green: