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I remember when I first moved to Idaho and heard friends talking about planting blackberries in their yards. I was taken aback, because where I’m from in the Pacific Northwest no one actually plants blackberries. That’s ridiculous. In fact, they’re kind of invasive and some people even go to great lengths to get rid of them. If you want blackberries, you do what everyone else does and just stop on the side of the road with a bucket, because they grow wildly everywhere! I have such fond memories of my childhood summers, walking across the street from my house to the giant ditch where blackberries were abundant and free for the picking all summer long. We’d put them in a bowl, sprinkle on sugar, and pour on cream and it was so dreamy. The last slurps at the end were my favorite when it was just purple-stained milk spiked with sweet sugar. A friend gave me some gorgeous, sweet, plump berries the other day and I wanted to make something yummy with them.
Most of the recipes we post here on Our Best Bites feed quite a crew, but we get lots of requests for things scaled down for couples, families with just one or two little kids, or singles, who don’t really need a 9×13 pan of everything. When it comes to fresh fruit, sometimes you don’t have a whole bushel laying around so I sometimes like to make mini-recipes. This particular day I had a couple of ripe peaches sitting on my counter so I just wanted to make a little something for me and the only kiddo who was at home with me at the time. You can certainly do the math and make a big ol’ pan of this, but I scaled this recipes down for just 2. Mind you, these are two generous servings so you could easily feed a spouse and a kiddo or two if you can manage to share.
Dice up a couple of ripe peaches, then toss in about 3/4 cup blackberries. It’s not a big deal to be exact here; crisps are very forgiving. You honestly can’t mess this up.
Toss in a little sugar
and a little flour, which will help thicken the juices. I also like to add a dash of cinnamon and ginger. Sometimes lemon zest if I have some.
Toss that all together and pile them in ramekins, or similar size baking dishes.
Then you’ll cover them generously with a mixture of butter, flour, sugar, brown sugar, and chopped pecans for crunch.
It may seem like a lot of topping but just trust me. Pile it on. I also like to sprinkle mine with coarse sugar (like Sugar in the Raw) because it creates an awesome sugary-crisp texture on top.
Bake them for about 30 minutes. Honestly, I watch them and I know when they’re done when they look like this:
Those spilled over edges are not a disaster, they’re glorious. I love the rustic charm it adds and color is insanely gorgeous.
After you let them cool for a few minutes, the juices will thicken a little bit
which makes it perfect for spooning over ice cream. You get fruit, syrup, and toppings, all in one.
You can also just spoon a scoop of ice cream right into your dish.
The combination of flavors with both the peaches and the blackberries is so amazing here, and this topping is craaaazy good. This is one of my most favorite summer dishes. Make a little mini batch today and share it with someone special!
Small Batch Blackberry Peach Crisp
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Ingredients
1 cup peeled ripe peaches (about 2 medium)
3/4 cup blackberries
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon sugar
couple dashes ground cinnamon
couple dashes ground ginger
Topping
3 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons chopped pecans
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons cold butter (if using unsalted, also add a pinch of salt)
optional: coarse sugar
Additional Ingredients
vanilla ice cream
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with foil and set aside.
Combine peaches and blackberries in a bowl. Add in flour, sugar, cinnamon, and ginger and toss to combine. Divide fruit mixture between 2 ramekins or other small baking dishes (if your ramekins are extra small, you may fill 3 or even 4).
In a separate bowl for topping, combine flour, sugar, brown sugar, nuts, and cinnamon. Add butter and use clean hands to break up pieces in flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs with some small pebbles. Divide topping mixture between ramekins.
Place ramekins on foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes, until topping is browned and crisp. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. If desired serve with ice cream (and you really should desire.)
Thanks for the awesome idea! That sounds delicious. I love apple crisp, but this sounds like a lot of fun to try too! And we’re one of those families of 3 that DO make a whole 9 X 13 of a crisp or cobbler…because we can gobble it down fast (sometimes even for breakfasts!) 🙂
I’m on vacation right now in the Seattle area. When I realized all the bushes on the roadside were blackberries I was in awe. We had to stop and pick some. In the two days we have been here I feel like that’s all I’ve done is picked berries. And I love it!
Haha, yes- isn’t it awesome?? I thought it was like that everywhere! LOL
yum. love making small batches of things like this for a family treat ( just 3 of us) opposed to 13 x 9 pans of things to take to get togethers….. i think we will be making this today…. breakfast???
We have a small family and I’m thrilled with the idea of small portions. Such a nice twist on a beautiful looking treat. Thanks for sharing 🙂
I am definitely trying this. It looks yummy. The little dishesyou put them in make them look even for yummy. Could you share where you got your baking dishes?
Wild berries is something I would really enjoy if they were available here. I can’t complain, I love tropical fruits, but berries, I adore. This looks so delicious… #JEALOUS 🙂
This looks amazing and I love the smaller portions! Do you think frozen peaches and blackberries would work, as well? And, would you thaw them first or put them in frozen? I love crisps and cobblers during the winter, but fresh fruit in December is so expensive that it nearly requires payment of your first born (and I’ve grown rather fond of her 😉
Weird…I just made a blueberry/peach crisp for two yesterday because I had some quickly over-ripening peaches and a half pint of blueberries hanging around. Although, I have to say that when I think “crisp”, to me it has to have rolled oats. Plus, that makes it good for you, right? Either way, this looks delicious, and now I know where to go for a recipe instead of just winging it!
Such a yummy crisp! Funny, I have your “plain” peach crisp cued up for this Thursday!! I’m making it for a potluck 🙂
This is my second summer living in the Northwest and I’m in love with the blackberries everywhere! Basically along any trail or road, you’re gonna find them. But, I’ve learned to be careful picking them because those thorny branches will getcha! This topping looks amazing! I can’t wait to give it a try.
On a side note, I just finished off a pint of your Huckleberry Pie ice-cream. It was delicious!! Even my husband that never goes for “fruity” ice cream couldn’t stop eating it.