Meatless Monday: Blueberry Crisp with Salted Almond Topping

Here it is nearly the end of July and we've had only a handful of truly hot days here in northeastern Wisconsin. That means I've had plenty of opportunities to bake fruit crisps, hands down the favorite dessert at our house.

This year, my stepdaughter surprised me with the gift of a blueberry bush, and there is a small clutch of blueberries which should ripen in a few weeks. According to this account, I'm better off pinching back growth for the first few summers to encourage future growth, but we'll see what happens.

Blueberries remind me of Grandma Annie (check out her blueberry pudding) and my childhood, and I am always happy to have them on hand for cereal or for baking desserts like this one and the one featured today.

I don't work with recipes when I make this favorite dessert, which pairs blueberries with salted almonds. But I'be done my best to document the process below.

For the fruit:

• 1-2 pints fresh blueberries, washed
• 1/3 cup sugar
• splash lime juice
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• healthy dash cinnamon (optional)

For the topping:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 5-6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 2/3 cup salted almonds, roughly ground
• pinch sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degres. Grease an 8-by-8-in baking pan.

After blueberries are washed and checked for stems, place them in the pan. Sprinkle with sugar and cornstarch or flour. Cinnamon is optional, but I think it adds depth. Set aside.

Pour flour, sugar and ground almonds into small bowl. Cut in pea-sized pieces of butter and a pinch of sea salt and blend until mixture has the consistency of streusel topping. Sprinkle evenly atop the blueberries. Add a pinch of sea salt to topping to both counter and enhance the sweetness.

Bake for about 40 minutes. Serve warm or chilled. My husband likes ice cream topping; I prefer yogurt.