Recipes: Chocolate Cherry Crumble

Posted by Claire Ragozzino

I’ve been holding this recipe for the past few weeks in complete anticipation of sharing it with you all! Before the last of our summer cherries slip away, here you are…a chocolate cherry crisp with (gasp!) almost but not quite five ingredients! That’s right, I created a recipe with less than 10 ingredients for once.  My friends over at The Fresh Exchange blog have this nifty little series called “Just 5” – as in, just 5 ingredients to complete an entire meal.  We often joke that my recipes fall under the category of “Just 5,000!” because of the scrolling pages of spices and super foods.…you know, the typical laundry list of things you’ll find in my recipes. Guilty as charged!

So this recipe was actually inspired by my good friend Kathleen and our weekly Sunday night dinners. Over the colder fall/winter months, she makes the most incredible paleo baked apple crumble using almonds, dates and apples, then she tops it in homemade coconut whipped cream.  How can you go wrong there? It’s hands down the most satisfying and simple dessert.Since we had a surprisingly cool spring and early summer here, our stone fruit season got a late start this year – meaning I’m still enjoying all my favorite parts of summer fare. I think nothing signifies a good summer like ripe juicy peaches and tart cherries!  As the season starts to wind down, I often buy a few extra pounds of my favorite stone fruit, then I pit and slice them up and store in my freezer for later in the year when cold-weather cravings arise for a baked crumble.

This crumble is actually quite versatile, and could really be made with any kind of fruit you’d like depending on the season. I chose to try out the chocolate + cherry combo, using a combination of pitted frozen cherries mixed with fresh sliced ones. I imagine it’d be pretty fabulous with late summer blackberries or blueberries, too. Whatever route you go, be sure to finish it off with Larry & Luna’s Coconut Bliss Vanilla Bean ice cream.

If you make this recipe, be sure to share your creation over on instagram with the Pure Green Magazine community in our hashtag project that just started! I feel really honored to be one of the community leaders of this project, alongside über food babes Laura Wright (The First Mess) and Lindsey Love (Dolly & Oatmeal). From August 15th-September 15th, share your favorite seasonal kitchen creations on instagram using the tags #PGMinseason #puregreenmag – when you do, you’ll enter to win a PGM subscription plus a spot on their blog to share your story! Read more about this delicious project here!

CHOCOLATE CHERRY CRUMBLE

Filling

3 cups pitted cherries, chopped (fresh or frozen, or both!)

1 orange, juiced & zested

1 bar of your favorite dark chocolate, chopped

Crumble

1 cup almond meal/flour

½ cup raw almonds

8 pitted dates

½ tsp vanilla bean (powder or extract)

¼ cup melted coconut oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Pit & slice the cherries, if using fresh cherries, or chop the thawed frozen cherries.  Place in medium sized baking dish.  Sprinkle with the orange juice and zest. Evenly spread the chopped chocolate chunks.

In a food processor, combine the raw almonds and pitted dates. Pulse until broken down.  Add the remaining ingredients and process until well combined.  Sprinkle across the filling. Cover the dish with foil and place in the oven to bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the filling is cooked and crumble is golden brown. Serve with a big scoop of Larry & Luna’s Coconut Dream Vanilla Bean Ice Cream!