Easy Cherry Crisp Recipe

Name: Easy Cherry Crisp Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 36 ounces cherry pie filling; 1 cup rolled-oats; 1/2 cup brown sugar; 1/2 cup all-purpose flour; 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1/2 tsp nutmeg; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 tbsp orange zest; 8 tbsp unsalted butter (cubed); 5 tbsp unsalted butter (melted )

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The most delicious and easy cherry crisp recipe! This dessert has a buttery, crunchy oat topping and is perfect for gatherings! Serve it warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream and you have one of the easiest party desserts.

Easy cherry crisp with vanilla ice cream.

A fruit crisp is one of my favorite desserts to make when entertaining. It’s always satisfying and can be assembled ahead of time. It can be baked while your guests are there as it’s delicious when served warm with vanilla ice cream!

While this recipe often makes a debut at our 4th of July parties, my homemade apple crisp is a staple during the fall!

If you’re looking for a straightforward, easy dessert that feeds enough people for a small gathering, this is it!

Why you’ll love this recipe:

Table of Contents

It’s easy to make as it’s made with cherry filling, which means no cherry pitter! You can buy an organic cherry filling for this recipe.

It can easily feed 10 people when served with ice cream.

The flavor can’t be beaten! It’s buttery, crunchy, and filled with cherry flavors!

How to Make a Cherry Crisp

We’ll cover everything you need to know to make this recipe, answer questions and share our tips. If you want to scroll to the recipe you’ll find the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Supplies

Here are a few supplies you’ll need to make this recipe:

Mixing Bowls
Pastry Blender – If you don’t have this you can use a fork or clean hands.
Silicone Spatula
10 Inch Skillet or 10″ square baking dish
Zester

Cherry filling, butter, orange zest, rolled oats, brown sugar, nutmeg in bowls.

Ingredient Notes

This recipe is made with simple ingredients you can find at your local grocery store.

Cherry Pie Filling – We used Lucky Leaf organic canned cherries for this recipe. We also use it for our cherry pie bars and it’s all you need for the filling. We like it because it’s too sweet and perfect for making a crisp. It’s made with simple ingredients such as lemon juice and organic sugar.

Rolled Oats – Any old-fashioned oats will work.

Brown Sugar – You can use light or dark brown sugar to add sweetness to the crisp topping.

All-Purpose Flour – You can also use whole wheat flour if you prefer.

Nutmeg – Gives the crisp more flavor depth and adds a little nutty flavor.

Baking Powder – Works as a leavening agent for the crisp topping.

Orange Zest – This compliments the flavor of the cherries and tastes so good! You can also use lemon zest too.

Butter – This recipe uses cubed, cold butter as well as melted butter. The butter adds so much flavor. Use good quality unsalted butter.

Expert Tips for Making The Best Cherry Crisp Recipe

1. Use organic cherry filling to make a crisp with the best flavor.

2. Bake this recipe is a skillet or a baking dish. It’s very forgiving on what dish you want to bake it in.

3. Bake the cherry crisp for 40 minutes until golden brown and bubbly. The cherries will start to bubble up and you can see them around the edges of the dish or skillet.

4. Let it cool slightly before serving it with a scoop of ice cream.

5. If you want to make the cherry crisp ahead of time, assemble it and leave in the fridge until you’re ready to bake.

6. Baking times vary, so always set the timer for 10 minutes less and then add on time as you need it.

How to Store

Refrigerate

If you have any leftovers, cherry crisp can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Freeze

If you’d like to freeze cherry crisp, assemble the cherry crisp mixture in an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake it, thaw the cherry crisp overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed. Enjoy!

Reheat

To reheat cherry crisp, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cherry crisp in an oven-safe dish and bake for about 20 minutes or until warm. Enjoy!

Cherry crisp on a pink plate with vanilla ice cream.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between a cherry crisp, cherry crumble, and cobbler?

Cherry crisp, cherry cobblers and cherry crumbles are all delicious recipes made with canned cherry pie filling.
Cobblers have a topping made with biscuit dough and is placed over the fruit, then baked. It has more of a bread texture to it.
Crisps are typically made with rolled oats, butter, and sugar. They have a crunchy, crispy topping and are very easy to make.
Crumbles are similar to a crisp with a streusel-like topping, however, they don’t have rolled oats. It’s a topping that is similar to our bakery-style muffins.

How can you make this gluten-free?

If you’d like to make cherry crisp gluten-free, substitute the flour with a gluten-free flour blend. Make sure you use certified gluten-free oats too.

Can you use frozen cherries?

We don’t recommend using frozen cherries for cherry crisp. Frozen cherry filling is too icy when cooked and can make the cherry crisp too soggy. They are also not sweetened in a filling and won’t work for our easy crisp recipe.

What to Serve with This Dessert

We love serving vanilla ice cream with this recipe as well as a fresh fruit platter. You can also make homemade whipped cream to top cherry crisp for an extra special treat. Here are a few more wonderful recipes to serve with this crisp: