Cherry Crisp Recipe

This easy, from-scratch cherry crisp recipe with fresh cherries features a buttery brown sugar and oat crumble topping and a sweet, juicy cherry filling. With instructions on how to use frozen cherries or canned pie filling so you can enjoy it year-round!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Cherry Crisp, Cherry Crisp Recipe, Cherry Crisp Recipe with Fresh Cherries

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 35

Servings servings

Calories 355kcal

Author Faith Gorsky

Equipment

Cherry pitter

Ingredients

Cherry Filling:

1 1/2 pounds fresh cherries (stems and pits removed; about 4 to 5 cups of cherries; see Notes to use frozen)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but recommended)
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

Crumble Topping:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (softened slightly but not melted)
6 tablespoons light brown sugar (lightly packed)
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the Cherry Filling:

Wash the cherries, then remove the stems and pits.
Add the cherries to a large bowl along with the lemon juice, vanilla extract, almond extract, sugar, flour, and salt. Toss to coat.
Let the cherries sit at room temperature for 45 minutes (TIP: letting the fruit macerate helps it release its juices).

For the Crumble Topping:

Mash the butter with a fork or beat it with an electric mixer. Add the brown sugar and salt, and mix to combine. Add the flour and oats and use your fingers (or a fork) to combine until the mixture forms large crumbles.

To Assemble and Bake:

Preheat the oven to 375F.
Pour the cherry filling (including any juices in the bottom of the bowl) into an 8 by 8-inch (or equivalent) baking dish. Spread it out evenly. Sprinkle the crumble topping evenly on top.
Bake until the crisp is golden on top and bubbling around the outside, about 35 minutes. Cool slightly and serve.

Video

Notes

Storage: Store leftovers wrapped in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating: To reheat cherry crisp in the oven, put it in an oven-safe dish and pop it into a preheated 325F oven until warm. The length of time will depend on how many servings, but if you're reheating the entire pan it'll take around 20 minutes. If the top starts to brown too much before it's warm, you can drape a piece of foil on top.
Sour (aka Tart) Cherries: For this recipe, use the same amount of sour cherries as sweet, reduce the amount of lemon juice to 1/2 tablespoon, and increase the granulated white sugar in the filling to 6 tablespoons.
Frozen Cherries: You'll need 1 1/2 pounds of frozen cherries to make this recipe. Let them thaw to room temperature, and then drain off most of the juices so your crisp isn't too watery. You can drain off all of the liquid, but I like to keep about 2 to 3 tablespoons for a little bit of moisture that makes this less dry and more like cherry pie filling. Keep everything else the same.
Canned Cherry Pie Filling: To make this recipe with store-bought cherry pie filling, you'll need one 30-ounce can of cherry pie filling. Omit all the ingredients for the cherry filling in the recipe, and keep everything else in the recipe the same.

Nutrition