arriba, Here is an article and recipe by David Lebovitz revealing his use of Polenta for a Crisp ..>

M

meryl

Well-known member
I think it's from Cook's Illustrated. I have one of their recipes on file for a Peach Crumble,

which was posted by cheezz, and they use that method.

 
Gay, thank you for these links. I think I will stop and the farmers market on the way

home tonight and pick up some berries!

 
Larger chunks...

...The recipe sounds like it gives a larger, chunkier topping which sounds appealing to me. I will be doing this again soon. I have peaches and blueberries plus cherries with which to experiment!

 
Thanks Meryl!

That is not what I read originally but is exactly what I will use from now on. Since I was winging it tonight I baked the topping completely on a separate sheet and added it prior to serving(over fresh cherries with lemon juice baked until bubbly)and it was the best crisp as the topping was really crisp, not soggy. This is the only way I will do it from now on!

 
arriba - I make this at LEAST once a month, so here it is with my notes....

2By the way, if it lasts until the third day (which is the longest I've ever had it around), the topping is still super-crunchy!!

This is a Cook's Illustrated recipe... need I say more?? I finally had to DOUBLE the recipe because my husband was eating it in 2 sittings and I wasn't getting any smileys/smile.gif It's really easy - just read it thru first. You pre-bake the crumbly topping until it sets, meanwhile assembling the filling. Then you slide the crumb topping on the filling and finish baking - another TDF!!!!


Best Peach Crumble
Cook’s Illustrated Jul/Aug 2006

Filling:
3-1/2 lb. ripe but firm peaches (6-7 medium), peeled, pitted, cut in half then into 3/4” wedges
(if fresh peaches are unavailable, substitute 5 10-oz. bags frozen peaches, thawed)
1/3 cup sugar
1-1/4 tsp. cornstarch (2 tsp.)
3-5 tsp. lemon juice (alter according to sweetness of peaches)
pinches: salt, cinnamon, nutmeg

Topping:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup + 1 Tbl. sugar
1/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
6 Tbl. butter cut into 6 pieces and very soft
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350 deg.

Filling:
Toss peaches & sugar in large bowl; let stand 30 min., tossing often. Drain peaches in colander, reserving juice. Whisk 1/4 cup reserved juice, cornstarch, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon & nutmeg in small bowl. Toss with peaches and put in an 8” square glass baking dish.

Topping:
While peaches are macerating, combine flour, sugars (reserve 1 Tbl. of the granulated sugar) and salt in bowl of food processor. (my food processor is in the attic, so I use a pastry blender like I would for pie crust). Drizzle vanilla over and toss well. Add butter and half of the nuts and process until it clumps together into large crumbly balls (again, with the pastry blender). Sprinkle rest of nuts over and pulse twice. Transfer to parchment lined baking sheet and spread in even layer. The largest pieces should be roughly 1/2” chunks. Bake until lightly browned and firm (18-22 min). (I do 16 min. -- it gets browner in the final cooking)

ASSEMBLY:
Using parchment (with topping chunks) as funnel, slide the topping over peaches, spreading evenly and packing down lightly. Sprinkle reserved tablespoon of sugar over. Increase oven temp to 375 and bake until well browned and fruit is bubbling around edges, 25-35 minutes. Cool on wire rack at least 15 min.

NOTE: this was DELICIOUS made with blueberries!

 
It sounds like a great idea - I'll have to try it! In case you want it, here's the recipe for the

Peach Crumble:

BEST PEACH CRUMBLE

Filling:
3-1/2 lb. ripe but firm peaches (6-7 medium), peeled, pitted, cut in half then into 3/4” wedges (if fresh peaches are unavailable, subsitute 5 10-oz. bags frozen peaches, thawed)
1/3 cup sugar
1-1/4 tsp. cornstarch
3-5 tsp. lemon juice (alter according to sweetness of peaches)
pinches: salt, cinnamon, nutmeg

Topping:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup + 1 Tbl. sugar
1/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
6 Tbl. butter cut into 6 pieces and very soft
1/2 cup sliced almonds

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 deg.

Filling:
Toss peaches & sugar in large bowl; let stand 30 min., tossing often. Drain peaches in colander, reserving juice. Whisk 1/4 cup reserved juice, cornstarch, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon & nutmeg in small bowl. Toss with peaches and put in an 8” square glass baking dish.

Topping:
While peaches are macerating, combine flour, sugars (reserve 1 Tbl. of the granulated sugar) and salt in bowl of food processor. Drizzle vanilla over and toss well. Add butter and half of the nuts and process until it clumps together into large crumbly balls. Sprinkle rest of nuts over and pulse twice. Transfer to parchment lined baking sheet and spread in even layer. The largest pieces should be roughly 1/2” chunks. Bake until lightly browned and firm (18-22 min).

ASSEMBLY:
Using parchment (with topping chunks) as funnel, slide the topping over peaches, spreading evenly and packing down lightly. Sprinkle reserved tablespoon of sugar over. Increase oven temp to 375 and bake until well browned and fruit is bubbling around edges, 25-35 minutes. Cool on wire rack at least 15 min.

Cook’s Illustrated Jul/Aug 2006
posted by cheezz - Finer Kitchens Forum

 
Gay--that is the article I read!

That is what inspired me to attempt the separate baking of fruit and topping. I know, I am just figuring this out after years of baking and probably many of you have been doing it that way for years!!
I am thrilled with the results and this is my new crisp technique.
Thanks to all who responded and helped me with this search!

 
Made this DL crisp last summer, everyone HATED it. The polenta

stays sand-hard and makes for a gritty mouthfeel.
Cheezz's grammy's peach cobbler is really good.

 
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