Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

I'm kicking off the month of July with a delicious Old fashioned Cherry Crisp. Warm, crisp, buttery sweet and filled with oats, this wholesome homey dessert is beautiful served with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream. Tis the season for cherries and I am cooking up one of my favorite cherry desserts.
This version is made without cherry pie filling, but instead uses fresh pitted cherries, sweetened with honey.
The buttery, oaty topping is flavored with ground cardamom and cinnamon. Cinnamon, cardamom, oats, cherries and honey? Count me in!!

Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

My parents had a cherry tree in the back of their house, right next to the garage. This tree got so tall it was almost impossible to pick the cherries without using a ladder. I think the birds got more cherries than we did each year!
Cherries have long been one of my favorite fruits. When we were living in the South of England, cherry sellers would come over from France every year and ply their wares by the sides of the road. It was pretty hard to resist buying some.
Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

They sold them by the kilo in brown paper bags. They were so sweet and warm. We would always get two bags. One was always gone before we hit home.
The other would be enjoyed in some type of baked good. Clafoutis, Kuchen, or a delicious old fashioned dessert such as this one I am sharing today.

Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

The recipe I am sharing today comes from the old Purity All Purpose Flour Cookbook. I have had this cookbook since I was a young Bride. It has been a standard in my kitchen now for about 45 years.
Yes, I am that old! I was married at the age of 19.
The Purity Cookbook was a standard in most women's kitchens back in the 1970's. It was to the Canadian woman what the Betty Crocker or Good Housekeeping cookbook was to the American woman, or what the Bero Cookbook was to our British counterparts.
Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

Reliable and steadfast, these old cookbooks have been helping women cook for many, many years. Put out by flour companies, they are filled with good basic recipes for everything under the sun.
Most Canadian girls cut their cooking teeth on the Purity Cookbook. It was a reliable resource and never let you down. Never.
Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHERRY CRISP
Oh, sure you could make a very passable cherry crisp by opening a tin of cherry pie filling, but once you have tasted one made from scratch, your life will never be the same.
For the crumble topping:

1/3 cup (45g) plain all purpose flour
2/3 cup (60g) rolled oats (not instant)
1/3 cup (80g) butter
1 1/4 cups (250g) soft light brown sugar, packed
pinch salt
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

For the filling:

3 cups (570g) pitted sour cherries
1/3 cup (80ml/112g) honey

Let it be noted, you can also use thawed frozen cherries for this delicious dessert. Thaw them out in a strainer over a bowl, draining off most of the liquid.
This version is sweetened with honey. The original recipe suggested corn syrup, but I would rather use a natural sweetener and so honey it was and it worked beautifully.
If you have sweet cherries, cut back on the amount of honey used. I would cut it back by half. There is no need to add flour or anything to the fruit, the honey makes the filling thick enough.
Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

Don't be tempted to use instant oats in the topping. Rolled or old fashioned oats are preferable. They give it a toothsome texture and a nice nutty flavor.
The use of ground cardamom and cinnamon give the topping a special home sweet home warmth that will have everyone smacking their lips.

HOW TO MAKE OLD FASHIONED CHERRY CRISP
Its really very easy. This delicious dessert is built from two simple components. That fruity base and the moreish oaty topping.Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a 1 1/2 quart shallow baking dish. Set aside.Cream the butter and brown sugar for the crumble topping together. Stir in the cardamom, salt and cinnamon. Stir the flour and oats into the creamed mixture until crumbly.Mix the pitted cherries with the honey. Pour into the buttered baking dish Scatter the crumble topping over the cherries evenly.Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, until the cherries are bubbling and the topping it golden brown.Serve warm. Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

This is at its best served fresh and warm on the day, preferably with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Spoon some of the cherry juices over top of the ice cream for a real treat!
Warm from the oven, fruit crisps are a wonderful way to bring the taste of summer into your home. They are easy to make and oh so delicious, and you can use just about any summer fruit that you like, or a combination thereof.
Old Fashioned Cherry Crisp

We have enjoyed them with peaches, plums, blueberries, rhubarb, apples, etc. It is truly a comforting, homey, wholesome dessert that pleases everyone.
After baking, you can keep the leftovers, covered, on the counter for several days, without refrigeration, or covered in the refrigerator for up to five days. You can also freeze this dessert very easily, thawing it prior to rewarming it gently.
This is the next best thing to cherry pie and a whole lot simpler to make. I would even go so far as to say, we like it better!