Summer Berry Crumble

Yesterday, frantically scanning the aisles at the Union Square Trader Joe's, crushing and being crushed by everyone around me, I stumbled on some of the most delicious and fresh looking berries I've seen all summer. After standing and debating for a minute, I decided to go for it: I bought a box each of raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and sweet red cherries. At this point, the line to check-out had expanded out of the store, and I had to wait for almost 30 minutes before I could leave. But later that night, curled up on the couch with a book and a bowlful of my simple and out-of-this-world delicious berry crumble, I knew it'd been 100% worth it.

The recipe, adapted from Gorden Ramsay's Healthy Appetite, is both incredibly healthy and almost laughably easy. It looks beautiful and tastes fantastic: fresh berries are tossed in tangy orange juice and a sprinkle of lemon peel, then topped with a sweet and crunchy brown sugar crumble. Be sure to use only the freshest berries for this - they are, as they should be, the star.

Ingredients:
2/3 cup raspberries
2/3 cup blackberries
2/3 cup strawberries, sliced
2/3 cup red cherries, halved and pitted
3 tbsp orange juice
1/8 tsp dried lemon peel

1/2 cup flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp butter, cold
2 tbsp old fashioned uncooked oats


Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
For the crumble, combine flour, sugar, butter and oats
Mush together with your fingers until crumbly
Spread out on baking sheet and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until browned
Combine berries in large bowl
Toss with orange juice and lemon peel
Spread out in baking dish, and top with crumble
Bake entire dish in oven for 5-10 minutes, to warm
Serve immediately (great with a dollop of whipped cream)

Serves 4