a la mode

Gorgeous red fruit bubbling away beneath a crunchy oat streusel topping -- this strawberry rhubarb crisp is one of the easiest and best desserts I know.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

rhubarb stalks,

strawberries,

sugar

cornstarch

vanilla extract

½ cup packed light brown sugar

salt

unsalted butter,

¾ cup old fashioned rolled oats

pecans

whipped cream

In a large bowl, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla. Stir until the fruit is evenly coated with the sugar mixture, and the sugar mixture is no longer white. 

Transfer the fruit mixture to a 2-quart or 8-inch baking dish (no need to butter it) and set aside while you prepare the topping.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and salt. Process until well combined, about 30 seconds. Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, with a few pea-sized clumps of butter within. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the oats and chopped pecans.  

Spoon the topping evenly over the fruit without packing down. Bake for 45-55 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown. Cool for 20 minutes before serving. Spoon into shallow bowls and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Note: If your baking dish is shallow, place it on top of a foil-lined sheet pan to catch any spills that might bubble over the edges.

Note: Don't be tempted to increase the strawberries in the recipe, or you'll end up with fruit soup (they release a lot of juice).

Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The crisp can be frozen tightly covered for up to 3 months. Before serving, reheat it, uncovered, in a 300°F oven until heated through and crisp on top.

This peach crisp with a generous oat-pecan streusel is summer comfort food defined.

Peach Crisp

peaches, peeled, pitted and cut into ¼-inch slices

lemon lemon

dark brown sugar

all-purpose flour

oats

⅔ cup pecans, chopped

cinnamon

nutmeg

(½ cup) unsalted butter, softened

Vanilla ice cream whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 350°F and set a rack in the middle position. Butter a 2-qt baking dish.

Make the peach filling: In a large bowl, combine the peaches, lemon juice, granulated sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and salt. Mix well to coat the peaches evenly.

Make the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour, oats, pecans, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, using your fingers to rub out any lumps of brown sugar. Add the soft butter and mix with a spoon until the mixture is crumbly (go ahead and use your hands if it's easier).

Transfer the peaches to the prepared baking dish and press into an even layer. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over top. Bake the crisp for 40 to 45 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Remove from the oven, and cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.

This rustic peach cobbler is made from sweet peaches, warm spices, and a homemade buttermilk biscuit topping.

Southern Peach Cobbler

peaches

all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with a knife

sugar, divided

baking powder

baking soda

buttermilk (see note)

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly butter a 9-inch square or 2.5-quart baking dish.

Make the peach filling: In a large bowl, combine the peaches, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix until well combined and the peaches are evenly coated. Set aside.

Make the biscuit topping: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the butter and rub in with your fingers, or blend with a pastry cutter, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and vanilla extract. Add the buttermilk-vanilla mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a spoon until evenly moistened. Do not overmix; the batter will look lumpy.

Assemble and bake the cobbler: Transfer the peach filling to the prepared baking dish and flatten into an even layer. Drop the batter in 6 large, evenly spaced dollops on top of the peaches. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly over the batter. Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the top is golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool for about 1 hour, then serve with vanilla ice cream or sweetened whipped cream. 

Cover any leftover cobbler loosely with a kitchen towel. (Do not cover with plastic wrap or the biscuit topping will get soggy.) Reheat in a 325°F oven for about 15 minutes. 

Note: If you’d like to make your own buttermilk, check out the easy method <a href="https://www.onceuponachef.com/how-to/how-to-make-buttermilk.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Make-Ahead Instructions:  The cobbler can be made one day ahead and kept, covered with foil, at room temperature. Reheat, covered with foil, in 300°F oven for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and continue reheating for 15 to 20 minutes more, or until warmed through.

The luscious fruit topping on this upside-down cake is the cherry on the cake, literally.

Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake

unsalted butter

⅓ cup (packed) dark brown sugar

balsamic vinegar

cherries

cornmeal (medium-grind)

eggs

almond extract

Vanilla ice cream

Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (the purpose of the baking sheet is to catch any caramel drips).

Make the Topping: In a 10- to 11-inch ovenproof skillet with 2-inch-high sides (preferably cast iron), combine the butter, brown sugar, vinegar, and salt over medium heat. Stir until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, a few minutes. Increase the heat to high; add the cherries and bring to boil for about 30 seconds. Remove the skillet from the heat.

Make the Cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a hand-held electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts.

With the mixer on low, add one-third of flour/cornmeal mixture and mix until just combined. Mix in half of the buttermilk, followed by another third of the flour/cornmeal mixture, the remaining buttermilk, and finally the remaining flour/cornmeal mixture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Spoon the batter over the cherries in the skillet and spread evenly over top to cover the cherries. 

Place the skillet on the prepared baking sheet and bake until the top is set and golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool the cake in the skillet on a rack for about 15 minutes. Place a platter over the skillet and carefully invert to remove the cake. If necessary, rearrange any cherries that may have become dislodged (if any cherry "goo" sticks to the pan, you can use a butter knife to spread it back over the cake). Cut the cake into wedges and serve warm or room temperature with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired. The cake is best served fresh on the day it is baked, but leftovers will keep in a covered container at room temperature for up to 2 days. 

Note: Cake flour gives the cake a much lighter, more delicate texture than all-purpose flour. If you don’t have any on hand, you can make your own by replacing 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons of the all-purpose flour with cornstarch.

Note: If your store doesn’t carry whole buttermilk (or you don't want to buy a whole carton), use plain Greek or regular yogurt thinned with milk to a thick but pourable consistency.

A comforting combination of sweet pear & tart dried cherries, plumped up in an orange-scented caramel syrup.

Pear & Dried Cherry Crisp with Walnut Streusel

walnuts

orange juice

orange zest

vanilla

D'Anjou

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and generously butter a 1&frac12; or 2-quart baking dish (I use a small 1&frac12; quart ceramic oval dish, but an 8 x 8 square baking dish will also work).

Make the streusel: Whisk together the flour, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Add the butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture begins to clump together. Stir in the walnuts. Cover and refrigerate.

Make the Filling: Combine the sugar, butter, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla and salt in a medium pan. Stir over medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Add the dried cherries, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the cherries begin to soften and the liquid is caramel colored and thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat, then add the pears (it's important to do this right away, as the pears cool the mixture and prevent it from over-caramelizing); stir until the pears are evenly coated with caramel sauce.

Transfer the fruit mixture to the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the streusel mixture evenly over top. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until the pears are tender and the top is crisp and golden. Serve warm or room temperature with lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Note: This dessert is best served warm out of the oven. You can prepare the streusel and fruit filling ahead of time, but keep them separate in the fridge. When you're ready to serve, top the fruit with the streusel and bake as directed. The recipe can easily be doubled and made in a 9x13-inch baking dish.

Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The crisp can be frozen tightly covered for up to 3 months. Before serving, reheat it, uncovered, in a 300°F oven until heated through and crisp on top.

Apples bubbling in their own juices, topped with a crunchy oat-pecan streusel -- this apple crisp is the ultimate fall dessert.

Apple Crisp

light brown sugar, packed

unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch dice

apples

In a food processor, pulse the flour with the brown sugar, ¼ cup of the granulated sugar and salt until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer the crumbs to a bowl and stir in the pecans and oats. Set aside.

Generously butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish. In a medium bowl, toss the apples with the remaining 6 tablespoons granulated sugar. Transfer the apple mixture to the prepared baking dish and cover with the oat topping. Bake in the middle of the oven for 40-50 minutes, or until the apples are tender when pierced and the topping is toasted. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Apples bubbling under a crunchy oat-pecan streusel, this rustic apple crisp is the ultimate fall dessert.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.

In a food processor, pulse the flour with the brown sugar, ¼ cup of the granulated sugar, and salt until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer the crumbs to a bowl and stir in the pecans and oats. Set aside.

This rustic blueberry cobbler features tart, syrupy blueberries with a sugared biscuit topping.

Blueberry Cobbler

blueberries (see note)

lemon

(½ cup) cold unsalted butter,

Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease an 8 x 8-inch square or 2-quart baking dish with butter.

Make the fruit filling: In a large bowl, toss the blueberries with the sugar and flour. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish and dot evenly with the 2 tablespoons of butter.

Make the biscuit topping: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, and the lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the butter and blend with your fingers or a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized clumps of butter within. Add the buttermilk and stir with a spoon until just combined. It will look a bit lumpy; that's good. Do not overmix.

Using a large spoon, dollop 8 to 10 spoonfuls of the biscuit batter over the blueberries, allowing the filling to peek through in spots (most of the filling will be covered). Sprinkle the remaining tablespoon sugar over the batter.

Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the biscuit top is golden, about 35 minutes. Check the cobbler; if the biscuit topping is nicely golden, cover loosely with foil and bake for 10 minutes more (even if the top is golden, the center still needs time to cook through). If it is not yet golden, leave uncovered and bake for 10 minutes more. Remove the foil, if necessary, and let cool for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream or <a href="https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/whipped-cream.html">sweetened whipped cream</a>.

Note:  When baking with berries, there's always some variation in the sweetness of the fruit. Taste the blueberries; if they happen to be very sweet, reduce the sugar in the filling to &frac23; cup.

Note: If you’d prefer to make your own buttermilk, follow my easy method <a href="https://www.onceuponachef.com/how-to/how-to-make-buttermilk.html">here</a>.

Make-Ahead Instructions: The cobbler can be made one day ahead and kept, covered with foil, at room temperature. Reheat, covered with foil, in 300°F oven for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and continue reheating for 15 to 20 minutes more, or until warmed through.

This bourbon-spiked challah bread pudding is the perfect dessert for a cozy night in.

Bread Pudding

milk

unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

bourbon

Vanilla ice cream,

Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the milk, sugar, melted butter, bourbon, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt and whisk until evenly combined. Mix in the challah cubes. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish, and let stand at least 1 hour (or refrigerate overnight).

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until the top is golden and puffy and the center is set. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The bread pudding can be assembled and refrigerated overnight. It can also be frozen, after baking, for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Before serving, reheat in a 300°F-oven until warmed through.

Apple cobbler is a rustic dish of apples bubbling in their juices beneath a biscuit crust that resembles a cobbled stone pathway.

Apple Cobbler

butter,

granulated sugar, divided

Preheat oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease an 8-inch square or 2-quart baking dish with butter.

Make the Apple Filling: In a large bowl, combine the apples, granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Toss until the apples are evenly coated. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish and pat into an even layer. Dot with the 2 tablespoons butter.

Make the Biscuit Topping: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the cold butter and smoosh with your fingers (or cut in with a pastry cutter) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized clumps of butter within. Add the buttermilk and stir until just combined and evenly moistened. It will look lumpy; that's good. Do not overmix.

Using a large spoon, dollop 8 to 10 spoonfuls of the biscuit batter over the apples, allowing the filling to show through in spots (most of the filling will be covered). Sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of sugar over the batter.

Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the top is golden, about 45 minutes (keep an eye on it during the last 10 minutes; if it looks like it's getting too brown, cover it loosely with aluminum foil). Let the cobbler cool for 15 to 20 minutes, then serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

Note: For the best flavor, use a combination of tart and sweet baking apples, such as Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Gala, Jonagold, Jonathan, and Golden Delicious. (Don't use all tart or all sweet, or the flavor won't be balanced. Click <a href="https://www.allrecipes.com/article/apples/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> for a guide to different types of apples for baking and cooking.) I typically use 2 Granny Smith, 2 Golden Delicious, and 1 Honeycrisp.

Top 11 a la mode recipes from across the web

The most viewed a la mode recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Peach Crisp

Southern Peach Cobbler

Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake

Pear & Dried Cherry Crisp with Waln...

Apple Crisp

Apple Crisp

Apple Crisp

Blueberry Cobbler

Bread Pudding

Apple Cobbler

Top 11 a la mode recipes from across the web

The most viewed a la mode recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Peach Crisp

Southern Peach Cobbler

Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake

Pear & Dried Cherry Crisp with Waln...

Apple Crisp

Apple Crisp

Apple Crisp

Blueberry Cobbler

Bread Pudding

Apple Cobbler

The most viewed a la mode recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine