Blueberry Crisp

Blueberries at market

By Cat, July 16, 2017 (Photo, right, from Wikimedia Commons)

A good friend has a blueberry orchard, so I’m always interested in trying a new way to fix them. This recipe, from the weekly “American Profile” insert in our local Daily Inter Lake newspaper, caught my eye. I’d also like to try it with huckleberries, which grow wild here.

The main alterations I’ve made to this recipe have to do with my health preferences; instead of:

• brown sugar, I prefer stevia with a bit of molasses;
• white flour, I prefer to pre-soak whole wheat flour or use sprouted wheat flour.
• regular sugar, I prefer to sweeten the filling with stevia.

Not yet tested

See also: 1. Fruity Treats Menu; 2. Yogurt-Spelt Crumble Topping; 3. Soaking & sprouting grains (before or after grinding/rolling)

Blueberry Crisp

I recommend locally grown, preferably Organic berries for maximum nutrient value and freshness. I’ve adapted this recipe to use a pre-soak method for the topping, based on my Yogurt-Spelt Crumble Topping but using wheat instead of spelt.

Serves 8 or more.

Ingredients & Equipment

• Topping:
• 1 cups whole wheat flour
• ½ tsp unrefined sea salt
• rounded ¼ tsp stevia extract powder (or ¾ cup brown sugar, and skip the molasses)
• ½ cup cold butter, diced
• 1 Tbsp molasses
• 8 tsp (2 Tbsp plus 2 tsp) homemade plain, unsweetened yogurt
• ½ cup Organic white flour (for next-day)
• Filling;
• 6 cups blueberries
• 2 Tbsp instant tapioca powder
• ½ tsp stevia extract powder (or 1 cup Rapadura or white cane sugar)
• ¼ cup freshly-squeezed orange juice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Equipment:
• medium and large bowls
• 11 x 9 baking dish

Method

1. Topping (if using presoak method)
   1. Presoak: Sift together whole wheat flour, salt, and stevia or sugar into a medium bowl. Cut in the butter, then stir in molasses and yogurt. NOTE for testing: first stir in 2 Tbsp yogurt; add  remaining 2 tsp yogurt one at a time as needed for the right texture.
   2. Cover with a cloth and set on counter overnight.
   3. In morning, mix in the white flour and break dough into crumbles.
2. Topping (if using sprouted grain flour)
   1. Combine flour, salt, and stevia or sugar in a bowl. Mix butter with molasses (if using; they won’t mix well), then cut into flour mixture with a pastry cutter, producing coarse crumbs;  OR combine flour mix with butter and molasses in a food processor and pulse mixture into coarse crumbs.
3. Preheat oven to 375°F; butter baking dish.
4. Filling: combine all ingredients in large bowl, then spoon into buttered baking dish. Crumble topping over top.
5. Bake  in preheated oven about 30 minutes, until topping is golden brown, and filling bubbles.
6. Serve with whipped cream

Here’s original recipe for my reference (since I don’t have a link to the recipe) in case I need to make changes after testing:

• Topping:
• 1 ½ cups flour
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup butter, diced
• ½ tsp salt
• Filling:
• 6 cups blueberries
• 2 Tbsp instant tapioca
• 1 cup sugar
• ¼ cup orange juice
• 1 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 375°F; combine flour, brown sugar, butter and salt in a food processor. Pulse mixture into coarse crumbs.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine filling ingredients, then spoon into baking dish, coated with cooking spray.
3. Top with an even layer of crumb topping.
4. Bake 40 minutes until topping is golden brown and filling bubbles.