Olallieberry Crisp

Olallieberries are only in season a short time (mid-June through mid-July). If you live in the Pacific Northwest, try to find a farm where you can pick your own. This recipe can be used with apples, blueberries, peaches, etc. I would suggest serving with vanilla ice cream (regular or soy) or fresh whipped cream. Enjoy summer and the berries that define it.

Topping:
6 Tbsp. butter, grated
¾ cups brown sugar, packed
⅔ cup all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ cup rolled oats
¼ tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Filling:
4 cups olallieberries or blackberries, cleaned and stemmed
½ cup sugar
3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, unbleached

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5). Butter a 2-2½ qt baking dish.

For the Topping:
In a small bowl, add the butter, sugar, flour, oats, salt and cinnamon. Mix to combine and set aside.

For the Filling:
In a medium sized bowl, mix the berries, sugar and flour. Toss gently so as not to break the berries.

Assemble:
Transfer the berry mixture to the buttered baking dish and cover with the crisp topping. Place the baking dish on a baking sheet in the oven (to catch any juices that might spill during cooking) and bake until the top is well browned and the berries are tender when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes.

Cook's Note: You can try this trick for the butter if you’d like. Freeze the butter for at least an hour. When ready to prepare the crisp topping, remove the butter from the freezer and “grate” the butter into the flour mixture using a microplane. I tried it and it was a great way to mix the butter into the flour.