When we went to Costco a couple of days ago, we picked up a flat of absolutely gorgeous fresh peaches...you know, the peaches that actually really smell like peaches? So many peaches we find in the store have absolutely no smell whatsoever. Since they're a bit higher in sugar than berries, I usually don't eat them very often, but hubby is a "Georgia boy" so we usually get them for him in the summer. Since this is a holiday, I decided to use them to make a special treat...grain and sugar free Easy Peach Crisp. I was always more of a nectarine person because they don't have fuzz; I'm just a little weird about putting fuzz in my mouth. LOL
I kept my crisp extremely simple without anything to distract from the fresh, ripe, sweet juicy peaches. And lucky for me, the peaches are peeled for this recipe (yay...no fuzz)! I did not add any sweetener to the peaches since they were naturally sweet enough (I used 3 peaches but you could add more if you wanted). The topping consisted of only blanched almond flour, a little bit of Swerve sweetener (or use other sweetener like xylitol), a touch of cinnamon and butter...along with my secret ingredient for adding just a tiny bit of "crisp" to my crisp...chia seeds! I figured they would add both fiber and crunch. This crisp could be made using a single baking dish such as a 12 x 7" casserole or 9" square baking dish, or any similar sized baking dish. I used 2 smaller 5 x 7" baking dishes. This crisp is not overly sweet and the peaches are the star...if you prefer your crisps a bit sweeter, you could increase the amount of sweetener, if desired. I snapped a few photos as well as included my easy peasy recipe below. Enjoy!
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| Topped and ready for the oven |
Easy Peach Crisp - Grain & Sugar Free
Ingredients:
3 to 4 fresh ripe peaches, peeled and sliced
1 cup almond flour
1/4 cup Swerve sweetener (up to 1/2 cup, to taste)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 Tablespoons cold butter, diced
1 Tablespoon chia seeds
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Layer peach slices in baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine almond flour, sweetener and cinnamon. Add butter and cut in with a pastry/dough cutter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs (or pulse briefly in a food processor). Stir in chia seeds. Sprinkle crumbly topping evenly over the peaches. Bake for 30 minutes or until peaches are bubbly and topping is golden brown.
*Note: If peaches used are not very sweet, increase amount of sweetener in topping by up to an additional 1/4 cup (also increase butter by 1 tablespoon to balance the additional dry ingredients). If desired, top warm crisp with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, dollop of whipped cream or a simple drizzle of heavy cream.
5 comments:
Hi GGC,
Warm Peach Crisp and cream sounds perfect! :-)
We used to have really tasty local peaches here ... but that was then / this is now. When I was little there was a peach tree in our back yard. I have pictures of myself as a baby sitting amongst bushels and boxes of peaches from that one tree. Even after the tree was long gone, my mom would buy fresh Michigan peaches for canning.
Years ago we used to get some great peaches in Alaska, of all places. They were air-shipped in, of course. One year we had the most awesome peaches ever. They were the "Imperial Lady" variety from Georgia and were utterly delectable! (That was the same year for outstanding nectarines, too.) If I live to be 100, I don't think I'll ever forget those peaches .....
Hi CyberSis,
Isn't that funny how simple memories of particularly delicious peaches are so deeply embedded in memories? Hard to imagine a single peach tree could produce so much isn't it?
I was quite surprised when some of your favorite peaches were enjoyed in Alaska...until you said they were air-shipped from Georgia! I can't tell you how many times we've picked up peaches and they literally have no smell, only to find they have no taste either. These particular peaches we got at Costco drew us to them an aisle away because of their "perfume"...I said to hubby, there are peaches here and he looked at me puzzled...I said smell, don't you smell peaches? Sure enough as we got around the corner, some of the most beautiful peaches were in front of us.
When I tasted the Peach Crisp this afternoon, I simply drizzled some heavy cream on top and it was wonderful (I intentionally didn't over sweeten the crisp so the peach flavor wasn't drowned by a non-natural sweetness...just enough to highlight it). These peaches were super sweet and juicy "as is". This evening we had a little scoop of sugar free coconut milk vanilla ice cream on top but I actually preferred the pure plain cream drizzled on top.
Speaking of nectarines, I can't tell you how many times in the past decade that we've bought nectarines and they were tasteless and mealy...which makes finding spectacular fruit a real treasure now. :-)
Hi GGC,
We had the peach crisp for dessert this evening and found it to be just as I expected ... super yummy! I used some local peaches, which were actually quite juicy and tasty. Although they weren't *quite* up to "Imperial Lady" standards, I may have to revise my "that was then, this is now" statement somewhat. Also, I've noticed that cooking improves and concentrates the flavor of just about any kind of ripe fruit ... except for melons and avocados, I suppose! :-) I didn't use any of the additional sweetener and the peaches baked up sweet and slightly tangy all at once, which gave them a very nice flavor that we really enjoyed.
The crumbly topping is so easy to make and delicious ... lots of bang for the buck! (I must confess that I put in a *rounded* 1/4 tsp of cinnamon, though!) The chia seeds give the topping a nice subtle texture without making it overly crunchy.
Now I'm in a real dilemma ... I can't decide which I like more, the peach crisp or the peach cobbler! :-)
Hi CyberSis,
So glad you enjoyed the Peach Crisp, too. Cinnamon makes almost anything better, right?
When you said you didn't add additional sweetener, I assume you meant you didn't add sweetener to the peaches. Did you still use it in the topping? What a dilemma though..."crisp or cobbler"...LOL. Glad you liked it. :-)
Hi GGC,
Yes, I did put the 1/4 cup of sweetener (I used Xyla) into the topping, but no additional. Also, I didn't add any sweetener to the peaches at all. Turned out just right for us! :-)
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