gluten free apricot-raspberry crumble with honey + vanilla bean mascarpone

i made this as a gluten-free dessert for book club and then i realized there is a hot debate about whether oats are truly gluten free, due to risk of contamination from neighboring wheat fields or machines that process oats and wheat, amid other reasons. you can purchase gf oats but mine weren't so i will call this delightful dessert gluten free with the fine print that in order to make it truly gf you must purchase specially labeled gf oats.

phew! now that that is out of the way...

let's talk about this crumble.

er, crisp.

for the record, a crumble and a crisp are the very same beast- fruit or berries topped with a nuts/oats/flour/butter/sugar combo and baked until crispy and crumbly (get it?) and bubbling with dark and sweet fruit and berry juices.

you can throw together a crispy crumble with just about any stone fruit and/or berries.

 i have apricots coming out of my ears right now, so apricots were a no brainer, but plums or peaches would also be lovely here. mix in some blueberries/raspberries/blackberries/strawberries and now you have a serious party going on in your mouth.

and then if you are feeling particularly frisky like i was yesterday, you can mix some mascarpone, heavy cream, honey and half of a vanilla bean's seeds (see the pretty little vanilla bean flecks in that pic above?), and plop a healthy dollop on top of that there crumble.

apricot-raspberry crumble

1 pint organic raspberries, rinsed

1 lb-ish rinsed apricots, torn in half, pit removed

2T sugar

1 T arrowroot powder/flour/cornstarch (to thicken the juices)

toss all ingredients into a bowl, combine and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

topping

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup oats (gluten free oats, if thats your thing)

5T butter, room temperature

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

a little cinnamon/cardamom/nutmeg if you like

put all ingredients in a bowl and use your fingers to smash it all together. the results will look like so

give the berry and apricot mixture one more toss and put in a 8x8 dish. top with the crumbly topping and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes-1 hour until bubbling and golden brown.

honey vanilla bean mascarpone cream 

1 small container mascarpone (i get mine@ trader j's)

3T honey

1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
1 tsp vanilla extract

4T heavy cream

put all ingredients in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until well combined and thick n fluffy. add more heavy cream if you want a more "whipped cream" like consistency. as the recipe is, it comes out with a dense pudding like texture.