Summer Berry Crisp No Sugar Added

This summer berry crisp has no added sugar, because to be honest, it doesn’t need it. Why mask the natural sweetness of ripe berries with sugar? Fruit is natures natural sugar, and it has such a beautiful raw sweetness on its own. 

If you haven’t noticed, this website is evolving, as I’m evolving. I started out sharing recipes that I made for my family, recipes that were kid and hubby approved, as I wanted a one-stop-shop for all you parents, a place where you could trust that whatever I posted was something that your family would love. I’m still posting approved recipes, but they are more from a natural chefs perspective and palate.

I call these new recipes, recipes for life. They’re recipes that are getting back to the basics in a way, back to real food and flavors. There’s so much processed foods out there that we have forgotten the taste of real food. Everything has sugar in it in some shape or form, from salad dressings, mustard to bread and crackers. It’s just something we’ve accepted, and our palates have unfortunately gotten used to.

I want to feed my body nourishing foods that fuel me, that give my body the nutrients it needs, that I can properly chew, foods that feel good to my body and gut, not food that upsets my gut, or food that you can’t truly taste because it’s masked with sugar and other ingredients that you can’t pronounce.  

So with that being said, I’m creating more base recipes for you all, and this summer berry crisp is just that, a base recipe. You can take this recipe and add more sweet to your individual palate, add a bit of a warming spice to it. I want you to learn to know your palate and be able to be your own personal natural chef. We all have an inner chef in us, you just have to trust your palate and trust what tastes good to you. This is where you start being the creator of your palate, and this is where the fun happens. 

This summer berry crisp isn’t just for dessert, since it’s free of any added sugar, you can serve it up as a healthy breakfast or brunch option, think baked oatmeal. Berries are a low glycemic fruit, so this crips is great for those who are on an anti-candida protocol. 

Summer Berry Crisp No Sugar Added

serves 4-6

.recipe adapted from Living Ayurveda 

Note: This crisp isn’t just for dessert, you can even make this for breakfast or brunch, think baked oatmeal. Berries are a low glycemic fruit, so this crisp is great for those who are on an anti-candida protocol. You can also substitute 6 cups of any summer fruit for the berries, think peaches or blackberries. 

Topping:

• 1 cup raw organic almonds
• 1/2 cup gluten-free organic rolled oats – I love Bob’s Red GF Mill Rolled Oats
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut – you can substitute the unsweetened coconut for 1/4 cup coconut sugar if you want to sweeten this crisp. 
• 2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil –I love Dr. Bronner’s Organic Virgin Coconut Oil 
• 2 tablespoons organic cold milled flaxseed 
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract –I love this vanilla from Morton and Bassett, as it doesn’t have added sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon pink Himalayan sea salt, or Celtic sea salt
• Optional – 1-2 tablespoons organic raw pumpkin seeds

Fruit Filling:

• 5 cups whole ripe strawberries, stems removed
• 1 cup ripe raspberries
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract – I love this vanilla from Morton and Bassett, as it doesn’t have added sugar
• Pinch of pink Himalayan sea sat

Additional toppings/pairings:

• Raw honey – top your crisp with a drizzle of raw honey and some bee pollen.
• Vanilla bean ice cream –  top the crisp with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.
• Plain Greek yogurt, DF plain yogurt, or Kiefer – pair the crisp with some yogurt for a breakfast parfait, and then top with some raw honey and bee pollen.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

In a food processor, add the almonds and pulse to break down until the almonds are roughly chopped and slightly crumbly (around 15-20 seconds). You don’t want to turn the almonds into flour. 

Add in the remaining topping ingredients to the processor, and pulse a few times until combined.  The coconut oil will help form a loose, crumbly mixture. Set topping mixture aside while you prepare the fruit filling.

In a large bowl, combine the fruit, vanilla and pinch of pink Himalayan sea salt and toss to combine.

Spread the fruit filling into an 8 x 8-inch baking dish. Make sure to evenly spread out the fruit. 

Spread the topping evenely over the fruit, making sure to push it down into the open holes. 

Bake crisp for 25-35 minutes on the lower rack of the oven, or until the berries are fully cooked down and gooey, and the topping become golden and crispy. I would give the crisp a check around the 20 minute mark to make sure the topping isn’t browning too much on the edges. If so, feel free to give the topping a stir to mix it around.  I personally had to toss the topping around a few times to make sure it wasn’t getting too browned in one area.

Remove crisp from oven, and allow to cool in the pan for 30 minutes. This helps the flavors to meld together.

Serve the crisp up into individual bowls. You can top this crisp with vanilla bean ice-cream, or raw honey to sweeten it. Mattie and I loved our crisp just as is, but Steve wanted his a bit sweeter, so he added some raw honey.

Like I said, this is a base recipe, you can substitute 1/4 cup coconut sugar in place of the raw coconut, and have a more traditional crisp. I chose to keep this free of added sugar for those of you that are trying to omit sugar. I feel this crisp tastes great with the natural sweetness of the fruit and unsweetened coconut. I also love keeping it free of added sugar, so it can be a healthy breakfast option., think baked oatmeal. 

Here’s another family favorite summer time treat,  2-ingredient dark chocolate magic shell.