Crumblies, Anyone?

My dad LOVED dessert.  Carrot cake may have been his favorite dessert (which will be another post down the road as I have found a delish carrot cake recipe) but not far behind was anything with "crumblies" on top.

Crumblies?

You know, the delicious streusel-like topping that is a combination of brown sugar, rolled oats, flour, a pinch of cinnamon and a whole lot of butter to hold it all together.

He always loved the apple pie my mom made that didn't have the traditional lattice-work on top but rather the crumblies.  I've acquired my dad's love of crumblies and to me, the filling of fruit is the sideshow but the delicious topping is the main attraction!  In typical fashion, my dad would justify this as an almost healthy dessert because it involved fruit.

This past weekend, I made a Strawberry and Peach Crumble that I know my dad would have loved.  My son was napping and I had a craving for something sweet but couldn't run to the grocery store while he was asleep so I had to make do with the ingredients I had in the house.  I happened to have a container of strawberries that was in need of being eaten within two days or thrown away and I hate to waste so into the Crumble they went!  Then, I moved on to the freezer.  We are moving in a couple weeks so I am trying to use up as much food as possible pre-move.  Lo and behold, there was a bag of frozen peaches I had purchased when I thought my son might have an interest in trying peaches.  Turns out, he had no interest.  So, into the Crumble went the peaches. 

I found a great recipe to pull together my random fruit assortment online.  God bless "The Google."  It turns out, Giada De Laurentiis must have found herself in the same position one day and she made a dessert with strawberries, peaches and a crumble topping.  Occasionally when I have made an Apple Crumble, the topping is a bit more high maintenance and involves blending by hand, but this was very easy.  I simply blended brown sugar, flour, and a stick of butter in the food processor while holding my breath that the whir of the food processor wouldn't wake up my sleeping son.  Thankfully, it didn't and about 40 minutes later, I took the bubbling, sweet Crumble from the oven and had a very nice treat as my son napped.  While I was sitting eating this glorious dessert, I couldn't help wishing my dad was with me to share in some strawberry and peaches with crumblies.  But, proving that he is with me and that my son is like him in so many ways, I gave Davis a bit of Crumble after his nap and he loved it. 

It seems that even at 11 months old, crumblies are just too good to pass up!

Here is the recipe:

Strawberry and Peach Crumble

Ingredients
Filling
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1/2 large lemon)
1.5-2 tablespoons corn starch
1 pound strawberries, halved
1 pound frozen peach slices (feel free to use fresh later this summer once they are in season)
1/2 cup light brown sugar

Topping
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup old fashioned style oats
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Details
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray medium baking dish, similar to this one with cooking spray.
*For the filling whisk together the lemon juice and corn starch until smooth. 
*Add the strawberries, peaches and brown sugar and toss until fruit is coated.  Pour the mixture into the dish.
*For the topping, combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and sea salt in a food processor.  Pulse until mixed.
*Add the butter and pulse until the butter is the size of peas.
*Sprinkle th emixture over the filling and bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the filling is bubbling and the top is light golden.

Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis' Strawberry and Peach Crumble recipe