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Fruit Crisp Topping

Fruit crisp topping made with a chunky oat, brown sugar, and butter crumble—cinnamon and nutmeg included for warm flavor. Scatter it over fruit and bake until deeply golden with visible clumps.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 370
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Fruit crisp topping
  • 1.5 cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar packed
  • 0.25 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 0.75 cup unsalted butter cold, cubed
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup chopped nuts optional
  • 0.25 cup shredded coconut optional

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Make the crisp topping
  1. In a large bowl, combine rolled oats, all-purpose flour, packed brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
  2. If using chopped nuts and shredded coconut, add them now and toss to evenly distribute.
  3. Add cold cubed unsalted butter and work it in with your fingertips, two forks, or a pastry cutter until large chunky clumps form, leaving some pea-sized butter pieces (about 2–4 minutes).
  4. Use the topping immediately over your prepared fruit filling, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate up to 5 days, or freeze up to 3 months.
Bake (over fruit filling)
  1. Bake over any fruit filling at 375F for 35-45 minutes, until the topping is deeply golden.

Notes

Pro tip: keep the butter cold and stop mixing as soon as you get chunky clumps—this helps the topping turn crisp instead of sandy. Refrigerate leftover topping (before baking) up to 5 days; freeze up to 3 months. For a lighter option, use half whole-wheat flour in place of all-purpose flour (texture stays crumbly).