Strawberry Crisp (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

This healthy Strawberry Crisp recipe is the best easy and delicious summer dessert! Gluten-free and vegan, made with naturally sweet and juicy fresh strawberries, topped with a dairy-free buttery and brown sugary crisp oat topping! Serve this warm and fruity dessert with your favorite vanilla ice cream or whipped topping for a perfect seasonal treat everyone will love!

When strawberry season arrives, all you want to do is grab a fresh strawberry from the bush and bite right into its perfect juicy sweetness! From strawberry picking at your local farm to picking up multiple pints at your local weekend farmer's market, the beautiful ruby red berries are everywhere! But when you have an (over) abundance of the berries, you need a few extra ideas on how to use them and a delicious gluten-free strawberry crisp is just the thing!

When Is Strawberry Season?

In most of the United States, strawberry season begins in April and runs through July, with its peak between May and June. These are the strawberries from California, you'll typically find in your local grocery store. However, for hot-climate Southern states, like Florida, the local strawberry season starts at the end of November and runs to the beginning of April! Strawberries love warm days and cool nights, making them an ideal late-spring early-summer fruit!

The Best Strawberry Crisp Recipe

Put those beautiful in-season strawberries to use in a simple and healthy crisp! You don't need anything fancy or over-the-top for this recipe. Let the natural flavors and sweetness of the berries do all the work! With less than 10 ingredients you can make this easy dessert in 25 minutes from start to finish! It's completely...

• Gluten-Free
• Vegan
• Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Corn-Free, Coconut-Free)
• Low in Sugar or Added Sugar-Free
• Kid-Friendly
• Quick & Easy
• Perfect Dessert or Special Summer Brunch Treat

Ingredients For Gluten-Free Strawberry Crisp

• Strawberries: Fresh, juicy, bursting with sweetness, strawberries! Peak season, peak taste, it's the only flavor you need!
• Orange Juice: Just a splash of orange juice will give your strawberries a perfect citrusy balance! While this ingredient is optional, you'll be pleased that you added it!
• Vanilla Extract: Hints of vanilla always add a subtle cozy vibe to any warm dessert!
• Granulated Sweetener: Just a sprinkle to coat the strawberries and some extra to make that crispy oat topping. Keep it added-sugar-free by using Swerve!
• Gluten-Free Flour: The cut strawberries will be gently tossed in some flour to make the baked filling ooey gooey. The rest of the gluten-free flour will be used in the crisp topping.
• Gluten-Free Rolled Oats: The wholesome flavor of rolled oats are a must for a traditional crisp topping. Certified gluten-free, of course!
• Brown Sugar Sweetener: That light caramel flavor of light brown sugar makes this fruit crisp so delectable! Use your favorite light brown sugar or sugar-free sweetener!
• Cinnamon + Salt: A pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of salt tie all the flavor notes together.
• Vegan Butter: Your favorite vegan butter is used to keep that crisp oat topping buttery and decadent!

Fresh or Frozen Strawberries

Can you use frozen strawberries in lieu of fresh? Just because it isn't peak strawberry season year-round, don't let that stop you from making this delicious crisp! If you use frozen strawberries, you don't need to slice them and you can add them right to the casserole dish frozen. There is no need to defrost them. The only downside to using frozen berries is that they contain more liquid. To combat all the excess liquid, add an extra tablespoon or two of gluten-free flour or cornstarch to the berries. This will help keep the filling nice and thick!

Other Ingredient Substitutions

• Swap orange juice for lemon juice! The point of this ingredient is to add an acidic balance to cut the sweetness of the strawberries. Lemon or orange will work wonderfully!
• Swap gluten-free oats for quinoa flakes! Even certified gluten-free oats can be difficult for celiacs, so swap them with quinoa flakes. The crisp will be less crisp and hearty but its the best replacement.
• Swap cinnamon with other cozy spices like cardamom, allspice, and even fresh citrus zest!
• Add shredded coconut to the crisp topping for a delicious coconutty flavor!

How To Make Strawberry Crisp

1. Rinse and dry your strawberries before removing the green hull and slicing your berries into quarters.
2. Toss your berries with flour, sugar, juice, and extract before adding them to a casserole dish.

3. Add all of the dry crisp topping ingredients to a bowl.
4. Whisk it together so the dry mixture is smooth and combined.

5. Melt the vegan butter in your microwave and add it to the whisked dry topping.
6. Use a fork to combine the crumbly and thick crisp oat topping. It should still be semi-dry, you don't want it to be like cookie dough.

7. Add the crisp oat topping, evenly, to the strawberries in your casserole dish.
8. Bake the strawberry crisp in the oven at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.

Baking Tips & Tricks

• For large berries, slice them into quarters. For smaller berries slicing them once in half is fine. They don't need to be uniformly sliced, you can even leave them whole if they aren't too big since the delicate berries cook so fast. You don't want them too tiny either of there won't be enough texture! It's more of a preference thing.
• If you want a more jelly-like filling, toss the strawberries in arrowroot or cornstarch instead of gluten-free flour.
• You can add crushed nuts or seeds to your crisp topping for more deep flavor and texture if your allergen needs allow.
• Using melted butter is what makes this a crisp and not a crumble. When the butter is melted and mixed with the dry crisp topping before being placed over the berries, it bakes as a separate entity in the oven, allowing it to get crisp and golden brown quickly.

What Size Baking Dish To Use

This is a small batch recipe that yields about 4 large servings. I used an 8x8 casserole dish, which was just right, if not a bit too large. if you plan on making a larger batch (doubling or tripling the recipe), make sure your casserole or baking dish is large enough and deep enough to prevent the strawberry filling from bubbling up and boiling over the edges of your dish when it bakes in the oven. Note that the more spread out your strawberry crisp is in the baking dish you use, the quicker it will bake and vice versa.

You can make single servings in 6-ounce ramekins by dividing the recipe evenly among 4 ramekins. Baking time will stay the same in this case.

How To Store Leftovers

To store leftover crisp, make sure the casserole dish is completely cool before covering it with a lid or foil and storing it in the fridge for 4-5 days. To reheat the crisp, warm the entire dish or single serving in the oven at 350°F to re-crisp the topping for about 10 minutes.

Can You Freeze Strawberry Crisp?

A fresh fruit crisp is not an ideal dessert to make ahead of time or to freeze. Freezing and thawing the fruit will result in a mushy and bland filling with a soggy (not)crisp topping. Honestly, if you freeze and reheat it, it will probably end up like strawberry oatmeal!

How To Serve Strawberry Crisp

Serve your fruity crisp right away, warm and ooey-gooey from the oven with its perfect golden crisp streusel top! You can always serve it Plain Jane style and let the natural fruity sweetness shine, but when it's summertime and you have a warm cozy crisp to enjoy, add a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream on top and let it slowly melt into the crisp is just heavenly! Don't want ice cream? Used dairy-free whipped cream or homemade marshmallow fluff!

More Healthy Strawberry Recipes:

• Strawberry Quick Bread
• Cream Stuffed Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Paleo Strawberry Coconut Thumbprint Cookies
• Strawberry Cappuccino Ice Cream

Print

Sweet fruit crisps will never go out of style! Such a quick and easy dessert for any season! From apple crisp, blueberry, and even blueberry rhubarb! This gluten-free strawberry crisp is going to be your summer go-to!

So tell me:

+ What's your favorite topping for a fruit crisp? Ice cream, of course!

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