Fresh Cherry Crisp Recipe
Published 6/11/2021 • Updated 6/17/2024
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This incredible cherry crisp recipe is made with fresh cherries and a sweet and buttery oatmeal crisp topping.
You won’t believe how easy it is to throw this cherry crisp together, so the next time cherries are on sale…scoop them up!
Best Cherry Crisp!
Everyone has their favorite fruit crisp recipe. My mom’s honey rhubarb crisp will always be my favorite crisp recipe and our apple crisp is a close second,
What makes a good crisp? A good balance of natural fruit with the crunch of a crumble topping are two of my must-haves in a crisp.
Our cherry crisp recipe is made with delicious fresh cherries and a simple, yet perfect oatmeal crisp topping. And, I am excited to say I just planted a cherry tree in my front yard and this WILL be the recipe I make first with our cherries.
Why Make this cherry crisp the best?
Butter Love
We used butter for our crumble topping. It really gives it the old-fashioned flavor that we are always looking for in a cherry crisp.
Only Fresh Ingredients
We also don’t ever use anything canned for our fruit filling and we stayed away from adding any sweeteners to the cherries themselves (they just didn’t need it).
That’s it. After you pit your cherries, make your crumble, and layer them together. You’re all set! It’s a perfect recipe for those of you looking for a light and easy dessert this summer.
Main Ingredients for Cherry Crisp
- Fresh Cherries – fresh cherries are a must for this recipe! If you don’t have them in your area, look for frozen cherries. Whatever you do, don’t use canned.
- Rolled Oats – rolled oats are the basis of the crisp topping. You can also use quick-cooking if you want.
- Light Brown Sugar – sweeten up the crisp topping with some brown sugar.
- Cinnamon – a pinch of cinnamon helps bring out the sweetness of the cherries.
- Flour – we’re using white whole wheat flour in this cherry crisp recipe, but you can use all-purpose.
- Butter – butter is seriously the way to go when it comes to crisp topping. You won’t be dissapointed!
- Orange Juice – OJ is our secret ingredient and really helps cook the cherries into a perfect filling for this crisp recipe.
Can you use frozen cherries?
Frozen cherries will work just fine for this recipe. We do, however, recommend thawing them first.
Ingredient Swaps
If you’re hoping to swap any of the above ingredients for something less refined, here are some ideas below.
Coconut Sugar – Switch the brown sugar for coconut sugar to use a 100% plant-based sugar that’s not as sweet, but still delish!
Coconut Oil – Hoping to make this recipe vegan? We suggest swapping out the butter for coconut oil and even reducing the amount to only 1/3 cup. This will cut fat and take out any dairy in this recipe.
Oat Flour – keep this recipe 100% gluten-free and use ground oat flour instead of white whole wheat. You can also try an all-purpose gluten-free flour. We suggest subbing 1:1.
Rolled Oats: don’t have rolled oats? Feel free to use quick-cooking. We do NOT suggest swapping for steel-cut.
Can I use a different berry instead of cherries?
You can use 4 cups of any kind of berry. Here are some ideas:
- blueberries
- strawberries
- raspberries
Do you have to refrigerate cherry crisp?
After baking your cherry crisp, we do suggest refrigerating. The reason why is because it will last longer in the fridge!
Storage
Transfer cherry crisp into an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3-5 days.
Fresh Cherry Crisp Recipe
Ingredients
Cherry Filling
- 4 cups pitted Bing cherries, halved
- 2 tablespoons white whole wheat flour
- 1/3 cup orange juice, option to sub water
Crisp Topping
- 1.5 cups rolled oats
- 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour, any kind of flour will work!
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, option to use coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (option to use coconut oil or half and half)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF and spray a cake pan (or any casserole dish) with nonstick cooking spray. We used a casserole dish.
- In a medium-sized bowl, toss cherries with 2 tablespoons of flour and orange juice. Transfer the fruit into the greased casserole dish and set it aside.
- Next, in a separate bowl, mix together all of the crumble ingredients. Use a fork (or your hands) to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it forms little crumbles. Evenly spread crumble topping over the cherries in the casserole dish.
- Bake at 375ºF for 30 minutes or until the filling begins to bubble and the crumble topping begins to brown.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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We liked this recipe. We were short on cherries and so just substituted some blueberries and used a smaller pan and cut the ingredients for the crumble in half. We used fresh orange juice and also granola instead of the oats for the top which was a great solution when you are out of oats! A great comfort dessert that is quick, easy and very good!
Oh I love the blueberry add-in!
Great idea, I might try that
This deserves 10 stars! So delicious! I love cherries and love that this is a lightened up version. I wanted to hide it from everyone and eat it by myself lol but I shared it and it was a hit! Served with Greek yogurt (all I had) but next time I’m serving with light whip topping!
Thank you thank you!! Glad you loved it!
After I make this, can I freeze it? Should I freeze before or after baking and if before baking, should I put the topping on or wait until I bake it. Thanks
Hi Marge! I would suggest preparing the cherry crisp and freeing before baking. Put everything together and freeze it in the container. Remove as much air as possible! Before baking, let it thaw completely and then follow the instructions as is!
I added almond extract to the wet mix and topped with some sliced almonds before Baking. Delish
LOVEEEE the almond extract idea.
Same hereeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Could I use tart cherries with this recipe??
same question…I have a bunch of pie “sour” cherries…will those work or do I need to add sugar?
Hi! I’ve actually never had a sour cherry. Do you normally eat them plain or add sugar?
I would try adding 1/2c sugar. Thinking of when I make rhubarb crisp, or cherry pie. Making a sour cherry pie right now : )
Just made this word-for word with frozen/ microwaved cherries– completely delicious! Would recommend!
Made this but changed it a bit! Used the basic recipe for the crumble (subbing coconut sugar for brown sugar, since it’s low on the glycemic index) I didn’t have cherries on hand so I used 3 cups of frozen blueberries (didn’t want to use up 4 cups, but should have) and since the the thawing process would generate water/juice, I just used 1/4C of lemon juice. It was DELICIOUS. If I had it to do again, though, would definitely use the full 4 cups of blueberries, or would make half the amount of crumble top. GREAT recipe. I can’t decide if I want to try it with next with cherries or if I might want to try a combo of apples and raisins! (for sort of an apple crisp). Also think it would be really good with fresh peaches! The basic, fairly healthy crumble recipe can be used with a variety of fruits. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
Your substitutions sound delish! Thank you for sharing!
I made this recipe and it turned out delicious!!! Made a little extra crumble cause that’s the best part. Always a crowd pleaser and such a classic recipe.
Yum! Do you think frozen cherries would work?
I am soo making this! Can I use honey or maple syrup instead of sugar?
Yes, you can use honey or maple! The consistency of the crumble may change, so you may need to add in some more oats. Let us know how it turns out!