Blueberry Crisp

It seems that whether you call something a crisp, crumble, cobbler, buckle, or betty is a regional distinction. They are all, basically, a baked fruit dessert with a topping. I call a dessert with an oatmeal-sugar-butter topping a 'crisp' and a dessert with flour-sugar-butter-egg topping a 'crumble.'

I like making crisps because they are so easy and fast (especially if you make individual-sized servings) and you can kind of just wing it with the recipe. Plus, you probably have the ingredients you need already in your cupboard! The leftovers are easy to store and reheat right in the microwave...and they taste just as amazing a few days later (if they last that long).

For this crisp, I used fresh blueberries (but you could easily use frozen). I tossed the blueberries in a little sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, cinnamon, a bit of cardamom, freshly grated nutmeg, and a pinch of salt. Mix together gently so as not to crush the blueberries and scoop into ramekins. I love making things in individual-sized servings because everything is cuter when it's small!

blueberries in ramekins...yum

The topping - again, easy to improvise! - is oats (the real ones, not the quick cooking kind), a bit of flour, brown sugar, more spices, another pinch of salt, and some butter. Cut the butter into the oat mixture...I use a pastry cutter to start and then my hands. Scoop a bit of topping into each dish. I use my hands - so easy!

delicious mixed oatmeal topping, going over the blueberries

and...that's it!

Bake at 350-375 for about 45 minutes or until the blueberry juices start to bubble up around the edges.

smells delightful

let cool slightly then serve warm, right in the ramekin,
with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream

Bye for now...