Stone Fruit Almond Breakfast Crisp

Starting in spring, I literally count down the weeks until stone fruit comes into season.

Peaches. Nectarines. Plums. Apricots.

And cherries. Oh, cherries! I just can’t seem to get enough of these crimson orbs during the summer months.

The vast majority of cherries I buy throughout the summer are eaten straight up, as nature intended – but I managed to keep a few handfuls from going directly from the bag to my mouth for this breakfast crisp.

You might be wondering: “What is a breakfast crisp?” Well, I’m glad you asked! Basically, it’s a fruit crisp with less sugar and fat than the traditional dessert would call for; rendering it perfect for a morning meal.

The crisp topping I used is comprised of almond meal (ground almonds – not almond flour), oats, sliced almonds, Sucanat (an unrefined brown sugar), and canola oil… all of which are healthy, but also fairly calorie-heavy. By using less crumb topping, not only do you save calories, but you also allow the sweet ripe fruit to – literally – shine through!

In order to highlight the double dose of almonds in the crisp topping, I added almond extract to the fruit filling. Almond extract is a strong flavor, and one that I know not everyone loves. If that is the case, feel free to sub in pure vanilla extract.

Leftovers are fantastic served cold, spooned over thick & creamy Greek yogurt; I also blended up a leftover serving along with frozen banana slices, Greek yogurt, and almond milk for a crazy delicious breakfast smoothie.

Stone Fruit Almond Breakfast Crisp

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Yield: 4 servings

NOTE: if possible, use all organic stone fruit

Ingredients:

• 1 cup stemmed, pitted, & halved sweet dark red cherries
• 2 medium-sized ripe peaches, pitted & chopped
• 2 medium-sized ripe nectarines, pitted & chopped
• 2 ripe ripe plums, pitted & chopped
• 2 ripe ripe apricots, pitted & chopped
• 1 Tbsp evaporated cane juice OR granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp arrowroot powder or cornstarch
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 2 Tbsp Sucanat or brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp canola oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the prepared fruit, sugar, maple syrup, arrowroot powder or cornstarch, almond extract, and ground cinnamon; stir to combine and set aside.
3. Stir together the almond meal, oats, sliced almonds, Sucanat, and salt in a medium bowl. Drizzle the canola oil over the mixture, and mix with your fingers until the mixture becomes crumbly.
4. Pour the fruit mixture into a lightly greased 8 inch baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the crisp topping. Bake at 375°F until the fruit filling is thick and bubbly, about 25-30 minutes.
5. Let stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information Per Serving:

328 calories, 15.1 grams fat, 0.9 grams saturated fat, 6 grams fiber, 30.2 grams sugar, 5.6 grams protein