These Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps with Brown Sugar Teff Streusel are bursting with vibrant fruit flavors and topped with a unique, earthy streusel, making them an easy and incredibly satisfying gluten-free dessert you’ll want to enjoy again and again.

Indulge in Guilt-Free Goodness: Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps with Teff Streusel

Today’s post brings a wave of excitement, even if it is a little overdue! I’m absolutely thrilled to shine a spotlight on my dear friend Alanna, the brilliant mind behind the The Bojon Gourmet blog, and now, a phenomenal cookbook author. If you’re not already familiar with her work, prepare to be captivated. Alanna’s photography is, without exaggeration, some of the most stunning I’ve ever encountered in the food blogging world. I first stumbled upon her site early in my own blogging journey, through Foodgawker. I distinctly remember losing myself for a good hour, simply mesmerized by the sheer beauty and artistry of her culinary captures. It was also then that I noticed her fondness for photographing her adorable orange cat, a sure sign, in my book, of a genuinely good soul.

A Culinary Revolution: Alanna’s Alternative Baker Cookbook

Alanna’s groundbreaking book is titled Alternative Baker: Reinventing Dessert with Gluten-Free Grains and Flours. This cookbook has left me utterly impressed. As someone who sometimes struggles to achieve perfect results even with pre-mixed gluten-free flours, I am truly in awe of Alanna’s ability to not only conceptualize but also master countless unique flour combinations. She transforms these combinations into an array of genuinely delicious and inventive desserts, pushing the boundaries of what gluten-free baking can be. Her expertise shines through on every page, offering a fresh perspective on baking without traditional wheat flour.

The Perfect Seasonal Treat: Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps

Today, I’m honored to share one of Alanna’s incredible creations from her cookbook: the Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps with Brown Sugar Teff Streusel. These crisps feel absolutely perfect for this time of year. As many of us embark on resolutions to eat a little healthier, these individual crisps offer a fantastic solution. They are generously packed with nutrient-rich fruits like apples, cranberries, and pomegranates, allowing you to indulge in a sweet treat without any of the guilt. It’s a wonderful way to enjoy dessert while still aligning with your wellness goals.

I’ve always had a soft spot for a classic apple crisp, but Alanna’s version elevates it to an entirely new level. The addition of tart cranberries and vibrant pomegranate arils introduces a delightful zing that perfectly complements the sweet apples. What truly sets this recipe apart is the inclusion of teff flour in the streusel. Teff, with its subtly earthy and nutty flavor, lends a wonderfully unique depth to the crisp topping. The texture is simply divine – a satisfying crunch that contrasts beautifully with the soft, warm fruit filling. I also adore Alanna’s choice to bake these crisps in individual mason jars. Confession: I’m a bit of a mason jar enthusiast myself! This presentation is not only charming but also incredibly convenient for portion control and serving. However, if mason jars aren’t readily available or if you prefer a more traditional, larger-format crisp, this recipe can certainly be adapted and baked in a standard baking dish.

Crafting Your Crisps: Key Ingredients and Their Roles

Filling – The Heart of the Crisp

Baking Apples: The foundation of our crisp. Alanna specifically recommends using tart baking apples like Granny Smith. Their firm texture holds up well during baking, preventing a mushy filling, and their tartness provides a crucial balance against the sweetness of the other ingredients and the streusel. We’re aiming for about 3 cups of 1/2-inch chunks after peeling and coring.
Coarsely Chopped Cranberries: These jewel-toned berries bring a burst of tangy flavor and a beautiful color contrast. You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries, making this a flexible recipe that can be enjoyed year-round. Their tartness is essential for a well-rounded flavor profile.
Pomegranate Arils: Adding another layer of vibrant color and a delightful pop of juicy tartness, pomegranate arils are a fantastic inclusion. Like cranberries, both fresh and frozen arils work perfectly in this recipe, offering a seasonal touch when fresh, or convenience when frozen.
Granulated Cane Sugar: A touch of sugar is necessary to sweeten the tart fruits and help them macerate, releasing their delicious juices during baking.
Fresh Lemon Juice: This ingredient is crucial for brightening the fruit flavors and preventing the apples from browning. It enhances the overall zestiness of the filling.
Corn Starch: Acting as a natural thickener, corn starch ensures your fruit filling achieves that perfectly luscious, slightly gooey consistency without being watery.

Streusel – The Perfect Gluten-Free Topping

Teff Flour: This is the star of the streusel! Teff flour, a tiny ancient grain from Ethiopia, contributes a distinctive earthy, slightly malty, and nutty flavor that truly sets this crisp apart. It also helps create a wonderfully crumbly and crisp texture, making it an excellent gluten-free alternative.
Sweet White Rice Flour: This gluten-free flour is known for its fine texture and ability to add tenderness and a slight chewiness to baked goods, contributing to the streusel’s pleasant mouthfeel.
Tapioca Flour: Derived from the cassava root, tapioca flour adds a subtle crispness and helps bind the streusel ingredients together, preventing it from becoming too sandy or dry.
Gluten-Free Old-Fashioned Oats: Rolled oats are essential for that classic streusel texture – hearty, chewy, and substantial. Ensure they are certified gluten-free if you are strictly avoiding gluten.
Packed Brown Sugar: Brown sugar not only adds sweetness but also a rich, molasses-like depth of flavor that complements the fruit beautifully. Its moistness also contributes to the streusel’s clumpiness.
Fine Sea Salt: A pinch of salt is vital for balancing the sweetness and enhancing all the other flavors in the streusel, making them more pronounced and complex.
Ground Cinnamon: This warm spice is a perfect partner to apples and cranberries, adding an aromatic, comforting note that ties all the flavors together.
Unsalted Butter: Cold, unsalted butter is key to achieving a truly crumbly and flavorful streusel. When rubbed into the dry ingredients, it creates those desirable pockets of buttery goodness that crisp up in the oven.

Step-by-Step Guide: How To Make This Gluten-Free Apple Cranberry Streusel Crisp

Prepare Your Oven: Start by positioning an oven rack in the center of your oven. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). This ensures even baking and a perfectly crisp topping.
Craft the Apple Filling: Begin by preparing your apples. Peel them, then carefully cut the flesh away from the core. Dice the apple flesh into uniform 1/2-inch chunks. You should yield approximately 3 cups of apple pieces. Uniform pieces ensure even cooking.
Combine and Pack the Fruit: In a large mixing bowl, gently toss together the diced apple chunks, coarsely chopped cranberries, vibrant pomegranate arils, granulated sugar, fresh lemon juice, and cornstarch. Mix until all the ingredients are evenly coated. Next, carefully pack this delicious fruit mixture into 6-8 small 4-ounce heatproof jars (standard canning jars work wonderfully). Fill the jars generously, right up to the top. Use your hands to firmly pack the fruit down; this is important because the fruit will reduce in volume significantly as it cooks.
Pre-bake the Fruit: Arrange the filled jars on a rimmed baking sheet. Loosely cover the baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-35 minutes, or until the fruit filling is visibly bubbling vigorously. This pre-baking step softens the fruit and allows it to release its juices, preventing a dry crisp. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and carefully uncover the jars.
Prepare the Teff Streusel: While the fruit is pre-baking, turn your attention to the streusel. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the teff flour, sweet white rice flour, tapioca flour, gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats, packed brown sugar, fine sea salt, and ground cinnamon. Stir these dry ingredients together until well combined. Now, add the cold, unsalted butter pieces. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour mixture. Continue rubbing until the butter is fully blended and the mixture forms distinct, large clumps. Avoid overmixing; a crumbly texture is what we’re after.
Assemble and Bake the Crisps: Once the pre-baked fruit is out of the oven and uncovered, it’s time to add the streusel. Evenly divide the prepared streusel mixture among the ramekins. For an ideal texture, pinch some of the streusel into larger chunks, roughly the size of hazelnuts, and leave the remaining streusel loose. Do not pack the streusel down; this allows for maximum crispiness. Return the baking sheet with the crisps to the oven. Bake for an additional 18-22 minutes, or until the streusel topping is beautifully golden brown and delightfully crisp.
Cool, Serve, and Store: Allow the baked crisps to cool slightly before serving. They are truly best enjoyed warm, perhaps topped with a generous scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream or a dollop of freshly whipped cream. The streusel is at its peak crispness shortly after baking. If you have any leftovers, they will keep well at room temperature for up to one day, or chilled in the refrigerator for up to three days. To revive their warmth and crispness, simply reheat them in a 350-degree Fahrenheit oven before serving.

Exploring the Wonders of Alternative Baker

Alternative Baker is more than just a cookbook; it’s an invitation to explore a world of flavors and textures in gluten-free baking. It’s the perfect companion for anyone eager to venture beyond traditional flours and experiment with exciting new gluten-free grains. For those who believe that gluten-free desserts can’t be truly delicious or innovative, Alanna’s book will be a delightful revelation. As she charmingly puts it, she’s a “recovering pastry chef,” and this background clearly informs her meticulous approach and profound understanding of flavor and technique. The book is a treasure trove, brimming with an incredible variety of recipes, including sophisticated cakes, rustic pies, elegant tarts, comforting puddings, classic cookies, and so much more!

What truly sets Alternative Baker apart is Alanna’s innovative use of less common flours like teff, sorghum, millet, and buckwheat, transforming them into desserts that are not only safe for those with gluten sensitivities but are genuinely delicious in their own right. Her recipes are meticulously tested and provide clear, concise instructions that empower even novice bakers to achieve stunning results. The book is a testament to the fact that dietary restrictions don’t have to mean sacrificing flavor or creativity in the kitchen.

Some of my personal favorites from the book, to name just a few that ignite the imagination, include the tantalizing Sweet Potato Bourbon Cheesecake Bites with Mesquite-Pecan Crust, the beautifully crafted Rosy Rhubarb Roulade Cake, the bright and zesty Cashew Lime Blondies, and the uniquely flavored Buckwheat Bergamot Double Chocolate Cookies. Each recipe is a testament to Alanna’s genius in reinventing dessert with wholesome, alternative ingredients.

Have a question about this delicious recipe or Alanna’s wonderful cookbook? Don’t hesitate to ask me in the comments below, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible!

Craving More Delectable Gluten-Free Desserts?

If these Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps have whetted your appetite for more gluten-free delights, explore some of these fantastic recipes:

Baked Gluten-Free Pumpkin Donuts
Healthier Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberries (Gluten-Free, Vegan, Refined Sugar-Free)
Chocolate Coconut Cupcakes with Chocolate Whipped Cream (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Easy Vegan Caramel Sauce with Tahini and Maple Syrup
Healthy Pumpkin Pie Baked Oatmeal Cups

Apple Cranberry Pomegranate Crisps with Brown Sugar Teff Streusel from Alternative Baker

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Yield: 6-8 1x

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Ingredients

Scale

Filling:

1 lb tart baking apples, such as Granny Smith (about 3 large)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
1/2 cup fresh or frozen pomegranate arils
2 tbsp granulated cane sugar
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp corn starch

Streusel:

1/4 cup teff flour
2 tbsp sweet white rice flour
1 tbsp tapioca flour
1/2 cup GF old-fashioned rolled oats
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

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Instructions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
To make the filling, peel the apples, cut the flesh off the core and cut into 1/2-inch chunks. You should have about 3 cups.
In a large bowl, toss together the apple chunks, chopped cranberries, pomegranate arils, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch until evenly combined. Pack the mixture into 6-8 small 4-ounce heatproof jars (such as canning jars), filling the jars to the top. Use your hands to really pack the fruit down; it will reduce as it cooks.
Place the jars on a rimmed baking sheet and cover loosely with a piece of foil. Bake until the fruit is bubbling vigorously, 25-35 minutes. Remove from the oven and uncover.
To make the streusel, in a medium-sized bowl, stir together the teff, sweet rice and tapioca flours with the oats, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add the butter pieces and rub them into the flour mixture with your fingertips until the butter is blended in and the mixture forms large clumps.
When the fruit has cooked, divide the streusel evenly among the ramekins, pinching some of it into chunks the size of hazelnuts and leaving the rest loose-don’t pack it down. Bake the crisps until the streusel is golden, 18-22 more minutes.
Let the crisps cool slightly, then serve warm topped with scoops of vanilla ice cream, if desired. They are best shortly after baking when the streusel is crisp, but will keep at room temperature for up to a day, or chilled for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 350 degree oven before serving.

Category: Dessert, Gluten Free, Vegan