The four C’s of fruit desserts: Cobbler, Crumble, Crisp, and Crunch!
Confession: I have been a little confused by the differences in a cobbler, crumble or crisp! Even crunch, which is apparently another name for a crisp. One thing they all have in common are these ingredients: flour, sugar, butter and fruit. The difference lies in the crust and topping. Although there are many variations and some include nuts and other ingredients, here is a simple way to keep them straight.
Cobbler: Dough mixed with fruit, can even be biscuits or scones
Crumble: Crust and topping made with sugar, flour and butter.
Crisp/Crunch: Same as a crumble with the addition of oats.
While there are many other ingredients you can use to make your dessert special, here is a very simple base recipe for a Crisp, or call it a Crunch if you like.
Filling:
One bag of cranberries
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of sugar
Cook until all the cranberries pop and you have a thicker mixture. Set the filling aside.
Crust:
1/2 cup of flour
1 cup of oats
1/2 cup of sugar
1 stick of butter, melted
You can use quick cook oats or you can use old-fashioned whole oats, or chop your old fashioned in the food processor, whatever your preference. Mix together.
Put half the mixture in the bottom of a pie plate, pressing down with your fingers until it covers the bottom. Spread cranberry filling on top of the crust. Then drop the rest of the crust on top of the filling, covering it as much as possible.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 or so minutes, until bubbly. Remove and serve warm with a heaping scoop of 4 Generations vanilla ice cream.
Note: I tend to use less sugar in my desserts than some might like, so if you lean towards sweeter is better, then add more sugar.