Another example of a recipe that can fit into either section of this chapter; I chose Everyday Desserts since this is the kind of laid back baking that’s perfect for lazy summer weekends. Sure, there’s prep and measuring and baking, but it’s all gloriously fluid. There’s no need to stress over exact measurements a great reason to have the kids help with this one or even exact ingredients. If you can’t find perfectly ripe peaches or the season has passed entirely, use plums. Or apples. Or pears. Throw in some berries, too, if you’re feeling sassy.
The most important thing is to flavor the fruit with a little lemon juice and spice, and to add some flour as a thickener. And, of course, having a killer crisp topping is important, too. This one works with any fruit.
Ingredients
- 6 ounces (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces, plus more for baking dish
- 4 cups peeled, sliced peaches (from 6 to 8 small to medium-size fresh, ripe peaches; you can substitute 4 cups thawed frozen peach slices, drained of their juice, or fresh nectarine, plum, apples, or pears)
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 juicy lemon)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger, to taste
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter a 2-quart baking dish and set aside. To make the Filling
- Place the peaches in a large bowl and toss with 1⁄2 cup of the brown sugar and the lemon juice, vanilla, ginger, and 2 tablespoons of the flour; set aside. To make the Topping
- Combine the remaining 1⁄2 cup of brown sugar, remaining cup of flour, the oats, and the salt in a medium-size bowl. Scatter the cold pieces of butter across the flour mixture and, using your hands or a pastry cutter, work the butter into the dry ingredients until clumps of varying sizes form. Some crumbs will be big, others small, and much of the mixture will turn into the texture of coarse sand.
- Pour the peach mixture into the prepared baking dish and cover evenly with the topping. Bake until the topping is crisp and golden brown, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before serving warm, ideally with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and Maple Cinnamon Whipped Cream.