The ultimate fruit crisp featuring summer fruit such as cherries, apricots and peaches, all finished off with a buttery oatmeal walnut topping. The perfect way to showcase summer fruit!
You can never go wrong with a good fruit crisp, especially when stone fruit and berries are plentiful and in season.
It took me a long time to find the perfect recipe for fruit crisp. I tried different variations for years and always found something that wasn’t quite right. For such a simple dessert you’d think it would be easy to make a good one, but there are a lot of factors that can go wrong. The fruit filling can be too sweet, too tart, too thick, too thin. The topping can have too much flour, too much oatmeal, too little butter or be overly greasy.
I can, with confidence, tell you that this recipe for mixed summer fruit crisp is the ultimate crisp recipe. To me, this crisp tastes like something you’d pay $8 for in a restaurant. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and you’ve got the perfect summer dessert.
How do you make fruit crisp?
For this recipe you’ll need 5 cups of your favorite summer fruit. I recommend a mixture of fruit – I used peaches, nectarines, apricots and cherries.
The fruit gets tossed in a little sugar and flour and then goes into the baking pan. The crisp topping takes just minutes to put together – the dry ingredients go into a bowl, melted butter is mixed in and then you’re done!
I used walnuts in my crisp topping, but you could substitute in pecans or almonds if you prefer. Or if you’re not a nut lover, leave them out entirely.
In my opinion, a crisp isn’t a complete dessert until you’ve added a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top – wouldn’t you agree?
You probably have everything you need at home right now to make this mixed summer fruit crisp. So what are you waiting for?!
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Fruit Crisp
Ingredients
For the fruit
- 5 cups summer fruit (I used equal amounts of peaches, apricots, nectarines and cherries), cut into similar sized pieces
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the topping
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
- pinch of salt
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- cooking spray
- Vanilla ice cream for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9 inch square baking pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, gently mix the fruit with the sugar, flour and vanilla extract; transfer to baking pan.
- For the topping, put the flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, walnuts and salt into a medium bowl, stir to combine. Pour in the melted butter. Using a fork, stir the ingredients until they are thoroughly combined.
- Sprinkle the topping evenly over the fruit mixture. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until topping is deep golden brown and fruit is bubbling. Cool slightly; serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.
Jessica says
Just made this to take to dinner at a friend’s house. It smelled wonderful while baking, and tasted even better! One of our friends has a dairy allergy, so we substituted coconut oil for the butter in the topping. Had to bake it about 10 minutes longer for the topping to really get crispy, but it still turned out amazing. Thank you for the simple, delicious recipe. We’ll absolutely be making this again!
Sara says
So glad to hear you loved it, thanks for reporting back!
Stacie says
This is the perfect fruit crisp recipe. I threw some blackberries in the crisp. It came out great!
Andi @ The Weary Chef says
I love all the fruits in here! Plus the ice cream at the top. Perfect! Pinned for later. 🙂
Becky Hardin | The Cookie Rookie says
Love this! Such a gorgeous post. I love a Summer fruit crisp!
Meg @ With Salt and Wit says
There are a few things that I want more this summer than a summer crisp. No idea why I haven’t gotten around to it but that needs to change! And vanilla ice cream…only way!
Mariah @ Mariah's Pleasing Plates says
I love fruit crisps! Can’t wait to try out your perfected recipe, looks amazing!! Especially topped with a big scoop of ice cream! Pinned for later 😉
Sara says
Thanks for pinning! 🙂
Gwen @simplyhealthyfamily says
I absolutely LOVE fruit crisps, one of my all time favorite desserts ever! You’re so right, getting this seemingly simple dessert perfect is somewhat of a challenge! Thanks for sharing! Pinning to make very, very soon! Gorgeous photos btw!
Sara says
Thanks for the compliment Gwen, I hope you get a chance to make this soon!
Florian @ContentednessCooking says
This looks so fresh and colorful! Another hit at the zoo!
Sara says
Thanks a bunch Florian!
Stacey @ Bake.Eat.Repeat. says
It took me a long time to find a fruit crisp recipe I loved too. This one looks fantastic though – I haven’t made crisp in a long time – need to change that!
Sara says
Summer is the perfect time to make a crisp for dessert!
Krista @ Joyful Healthy Eats says
LOVE fruit crisp, especially when its warm and has a big scoop of ice cream on top! This sounds incredible and love that you mixed a bunch of different summer fruits for a little variety!
Sara says
Thanks Krista, the mixture of fruit adds great flavor and texture!
Kaitie says
Mmmmm so good & mixed fruit is perfect for this time of year! Love your pictures as well! They look amazing & appetizing!
Sara says
Thanks for the compliment Kaitie! 🙂
Ali from Home & Plate says
Sara, I prefer a fruit crisp with a mix of stone fruits and your photos make me want to goggle up the whole pan. Delicious!
Sara says
Thanks Ali! It’s really easy to gobble up the whole pan, my husband only got a small piece because the kids and I made good work of it before he got home! 😉
Kathryn @ FoodieGirlChicago says
This is lovely – I really like the fruit combination. Such a great summer dessert!
Sara says
Thanks Kathryn, it really is the perfect summer dessert!
Marye says
Fruit crisps are one of my very favorite desserts! This looks so good!
Kristen @ A Mind Full Mom says
Fruit crisp is such a perfect summer dessert–yours looks gorgeous!
allie @ Through Her Looking Glass says
Dear Sarah – This is by far the prettiest fruit crisp I’ve ever seen. Would love to make this for my family! Perfect with that scoop of vanilla ice-cream !
Sara says
Thanks Allie! A crisp is practically naked without a scoop of ice cream on top! 🙂
Julia says
Fruit crisps are my favorite in the summer. They remind me of my childhood. The crispy topping is by far my favorite!
Sara says
Thanks Julia, the topping is my favorite part too!