Brown Butter Blueberry Peach Crisp

I originally published this recipe in 2016 and have since added new photos and a few more success tips. A giant spoonful of warm peach crisp topped with vanilla ice cream and we’re all set for summer gatherings, celebrations, 4th of July, Labor Day, and everything else during the warm summer months. Nothing comes close to fruit crisp when peaches are in season, though adding blueberries and brown butter surely ups the ante!

Here’s Why This Is the Best Blueberry Peach Crisp

Each bite is warm and juicy Lots of sweet, cozy, cinnamon-y flavor Made with fewer than 10 ingredients Topped with brown butter streusel Everything you love about blueberry peach pie, but even simpler to make. No pie crust needed! Use any size pan you like (see below for more details)

Blueberry Peach Crisp Ingredients

Simplicity is the name of the game today—you need just a few basic ingredients for this summer dessert.

Butter: For brown butter streusel, begin by browning the butter. You’ll be glad you took the time for this extra step. Cinnamon: Cinnamon adds warm, cozy flavor to the streusel topping. It’s a common addition when baking with peaches and you’ll love the two paired together in peach muffins, peach cobbler, and peach bread too. Oats: Oats are a key streusel ingredient. For this recipe, you can use old-fashioned or quick oats. Flour: You’ll use all-purpose flour in both the topping and the filling. Sugars: To sweeten, use brown sugar in the streusel topping and granulated sugar in the fruit filling. Blueberries & Peaches: The star of today’s crisp! I strongly encourage you to use fresh fruits because frozen, even if you skipping thawing, keep the topping quite mushy. Salt & Vanilla Extract: Both add flavor to the filling. Try using homemade vanilla extract.

Why Brown Butter?

Brown butter is melted butter with a nutty and bold flavor brought on by gently cooking it on the stove. This one-ingredient wonder amplifies the sweet flavors and pairs wonderfully with our fresh blueberries and peaches in today’s crisp. It’s a wildly simple step that adds so much flavor. Browning butter takes less than 10 minutes and is a kitchen skill any baker can master. Here’s exactly how to brown butter with a video tutorial and lots of tips to help you begin. Once you’ve mastered browning butter, the possibilities are endless—think brown butter chocolate chip cookies, brown butter apple blondies, brown butter pound cake, and more. For today’s crisp, you’ll brown the butter and then place it in a container in the refrigerator or freezer until solid. It needs to become solid so you can cut it into the other streusel ingredients. If it’s melted or too soft, the topping will end up mushy. While the butter is solidifying, prepare the rest of the crisp. This is really easy—you’ll simply mix the remaining streusel ingredients together, and then mix all of the fruit filling ingredients together.

What Other Fruits Can I Use?

To mix it up, try all peaches or a peach and strawberry mix/peach and blackberry mix. You aren’t limited to the blueberry and peach combination. But, there’s something special about peaches and blueberries together—the varying shapes and textures make each bite a little more interesting. After the brown butter has solidified, cut it into the rest of the topping ingredients using a pastry cutter or two forks. Sprinkle it over the filling:

Best Baking Pan to Use

You have options! While I typically bake this blueberry peach crisp in a cast iron skillet, there are plenty of other pans that work just as well—fruit crisp isn’t picky like that. You can use a deep-dish 9-inch pie dish, 9-inch square pan, or any 2–2.5-quart baking dish. Warm out of the oven, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of fresh homemade whipped cream.