I’m going a bit nuts with the crisps and cobblers, but I’ve got all this great fruit that I want to use up, and crisps are quick and easy and not too bad for you.

There’s a spot a couple miles from my house that sells blackberries.  It’s not even a farm, just a house, but they have blackberry bushes in the back of their property that put out the best blackberries I’ve ever had.  I’m talking berries as big as even MY thumb, and sweet as can be.  Black purple fruit just full of blackberry perfection.

I also have some nice herbs growing in hanging baskets that I’ve been trying to use this summer.  I like herbs and fruit paired together; the combo can turn a dessert into almost a side dish, especially when baked on the Bubba Keg or Big Green Egg.

Sunday, I fixed herb-marinated chicken breast with lots of farmers market veggies - grilled potatoes, carrots and baby onions, also marinated in herbs, balsamic vinegar and olive oil, with some honey added to the carrots.

The meal was very good and fresh, and the blackberry thyme crisp at the end was really kind of an elegant touch, if I do say so myself.

The crisp recipe is pretty simple, and I made a small crisp.  For more than a couple people, the recipe could be doubled.

Filling:

• 1 quart fresh blackberries
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2-3 tbsp cane sugar (use more if berries are more tart)
• 4-5 sprigs thyme, leaves removed from stems
• juice from 1/2 lemon

Topping:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 3/8 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 stick butter, melted

Combine filling ingredients gently so as not to break up the berries, and put into small baking dish.

Combine all topping ingredients, and cover the berries in the baking dish

Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, until the top is browned nicely and the filling is deliciously bubbly.  Serve as is, or with a dollop of creme fraiche.

The crisp can be dessert, or try it next to an ancho rubbed pork chop. And baking it on the grill, with a bit of wood smoking while it baked, gave the crisp a bit of smokiness, making it a bit more savory, which went really nice with the sweet-tart berries and thyme.

Do you do any fruit/herb combos?  Let me know, so I can try some new ones!