Strawberry Mango Coconut Crisp (Gluten Free)

The delightful dish household was hit with one killer cold/flu virus last week. I was completely incapacitated for the better part of the week. And when the plague was finished with me, it moved on to the boy! The nerve of it. 

The worst part? I was hardly interested in any food at all for daaaaaaaays. This was new to me. No matter what goes wrong there is one thing you can be sure of, and it is that I am planning my next meal. Scheming my next snack. So you KNOW there is a problem if I am not hungry. I am only aware of one other occurrence of this, after having my wisdom teeth removed last year, and even that didn't last long (oh hello, pudding cups!).

I eventually realized my lack of interest was due to out-of-order taste buds. Poor little guys had lost their flavour-detecting-powers. And what point is there in eating when everything tastes like sand? None, I tell you. None. I started overloading everything with salt or sugar just to get my fix, the flavour junky that I am. A life without taste buds sure would be a sad life to live...

One of those awful days, the only food I would even consider touching was the soba-noodle-nebiyaki from our favourite Japanese (which we sadly no longer live around the corner from). The craving popped into my head and stayed there stubbornly... the hot, spicy, salty (sinus clearing!) broth swimming with noodles, chicken and egg. I had to have it. So my sweetheart of a boyfriend, already feeling not-so-hot himself, but probably sick of hearing me whine, ran right out and got it for me.

(Isn't he the best?)

That soup. I swear. It is the reason I am still living. 

By Saturday we had both mostly recovered, save for some headaches and coughing fits. My taste buds were on the mend and I was craving normalcy. And normalcy for me means gettin' in the kitchen! We also happened to have a huge amount of strawberries deteriorating in the fridge... so I set out to create something yummy with them and this crisp/ crumble is what resulted.

This was like a flavour explosion after a week of bland tasting foods. Once again, I was surprised at how good a gluten free dessert could be. It really doesn't taste it! With the sweet fruit and nutty coconut pieces it is a little bit tropical. But still a familiar-comforting dessert in the way crisps and crumbles are. I would make this again in a heartbeat and share with all my non-GF friends :)

Even if you are not gluten free, you must find a way to get this flavour combo in your mouth. Seriously yummy!

 

Strawberry Mango Coconut Crisp (Gluten Free)

 

Switch the butter in the topping for margarine or coconut oil to make this recipe diary free.

Ingredients - Fruit Mixture

2 Cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 Mango, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 to 1 Tablespoon agave syrup or honey
Sprinkle of cinnamon
2 Teaspoons corn starch

Ingredients - Topping

1 Cup gluten free baking or pancake mix ( I used Pamela's)
1/2 Cup brown sugar
1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
1/3 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup large flake coconut, unsweetened

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease the bottom and sides of a pie plate or gratin dish. Cut up the fruit and mix with the agave/ honey, cinnamon, and cornstarch. Set aside.

2. Whisk together the baking mix, sugar, and spices. Add butter and work in with your hands until the dough forms pea-sized pieces, mix in coconut flakes.

3. Press about 1/3 of the flour mixture into the bottom of the baking dish. Use the palm of your hand to press it flat, this will be a thin layer. Spread the fruit in an even layer over top, and top with the remaining crumble mixture. Bake at 350 F for 30-40 minutes, until the filling is bubbling and the top is browned.

Toppings are endless: a drizzle of full-fat coconut milk , a dollop of whipped cream, or a scoop of a vanilla bean gelato. I think I'll help myself to that last option right about now.

Recipe adapted from this one.