Grain-free Strawberry Crumble

Do you ever have so many strawberries and they are at risk of going bad before you can eat them all?

This rarely happens to us, but the other week I had bought our regular amount of strawberries and forgot that I had also bought cherries, and apricots, and peaches, and clementines, and blueberries. Even though my kids eat a lot of fruit, I was a bit overzealous in my farmer’s market purchases, and my strawberries were looking neglected and about to spoil.

I really hate to throw away good food, so I decided that making some sort of strawberry crisp/crumble would be an acceptable solution. I had also just seen a grain-free granola recipe that I thought looked good, but hadn’t tried yet. So I decided to combine the two and see what would happen. Deliciousness, that is what happened. 

My Strawberry Crumble combines sweet cooked strawberries with a grain-free granola crumble topping. It works well as a dessert (and perfect for potlucks), but I’ve also been eating it as a snack. I hope you like it as much as my girls and I do!

Grain-free Strawberry Crumble

• 1 cup mixed raw, unsalted nuts (I used pecans, walnuts, and almonds)
• 2/3 cup almond flour (or other nut flour)
• 2 Tbsp. tapioca flour
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup honey (preferably raw, unfiltered, and local)
• 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp.) cold butter, cut into small cubes
• 4 cups of strawberries, sliced into small pieces
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp. tapioca flour

To Cook:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a food processor (or by hand if you don’t have a food processor), chop the mixed nuts until they are in small chunks. If you like a chunkier texture, leave the nuts in larger pieces; otherwise, pulse/chop them until they are in small, uniform pieces. Pulse/mix in other dry ingredients (almond flour, 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour, salt, and cinnamon).
3. Pulse/mix in honey until it is distributed evenly. I heated my honey a little so that it mixed more easily. Then pulse in the butter a few chunks at a time until the mixture is chunky in texture. If you aren’t using a food processor, use a fork to work the butter into the nut mixture. I used a meat fork–great tool (and a tip I learned from my Granny!). Note: If your butter is too soft, you can freeze it for a few minutes to make it easier to cut and mix into the nut mixture. Refrigerate until you are ready to use.
   

   My meat fork–thanks, Granny!

   

   Nut mixture

4. Wash and cut up your strawberries into small, even slices. Mix in the lemon juice and vanilla. Then toss them with the final 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour.
   

   Strawberry slices

5. Put the strawberry mixture in a greased 8×8 baking dish. Then spread the nut mixture over the top, trying to cover all the strawberries evenly. It will be thick and sticky, so just do the best you can.
   

   Before baking

6. Cover and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350F for 30 minutes. Then, remove the cover and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until the strawberries are bubbly and the topping is lightly browned and firm.
   

   Straight from the oven

7. Let cool (if you can!), then enjoy! Top this with some whipped cream (dairy or coconut) if you are feeling extra decadent.

This post is linked to Tasty Traditions, Real Food Wednesday, Party Wave Wednesday, Fight Back Fridays, and The Paleo Rodeo.