Serviceberry pecan maple crumble

Last Updated on May 18, 2024 by Susan von Frank

Serviceberries: a delicious dessert fruit

Serviceberry season is upon us! Serviceberries (Amelanchier spp.), also known as juneberries or saskatoon, are a delicious native fruit.

To learn more about them, see our article: How to grow, forage, and eat serviceberries. 

Raw serviceberries taste like a cross between blueberries and peaches — truly delicious. Cooked, they also develop a distinctive almond flavor. These features make them incredible in desserts like our: 

• serviceberry cobbler made in a cast iron pan, and
• crustless serviceberry custard pie.

With our first nice harvest of serviceberries this season we decided to make a new, simple dessert recipe: serviceberry pecan maple crumble.

If you have serviceberries you’d like to put to good use in a dessert, this recipe is for you!

What you’ll need:

For baking, all you’ll need is a buttered 8″ x 8″ baking dish. 

As for the primary ingredients, you’ll need the following (note alternative ingredients):

• fresh ripe serviceberries 
• organic white whole wheat pastry flour (alt: all-purpose flour)
• organic old fashioned oats 
• maple sugar (alt: light brown sugar, coconut sugar, or combo of the two) 
• pecans, which you’ll pulverize and incorporate into the crumble crust (alt: walnuts or almonds) 
• unsalted butter (alt: coconut oil or vegan butter substitute of your choice)

Unlike most other baked desserts, crumbles are quite forgiving when it comes to precise ingredient ratios. We provide ingredient quantities in grams below, but you can deviate a bit and still get great results. 

Serviceberry crumble, step by step: 

To help you get this recipe just right, here are some process photos and notes: 

1. You’ll start by pre-heating your oven to 375°F (190°C) and buttering an 8×8″ baking dish. We used a glass baking dish, but metal or ceramic will work fine. They might require a slightly shorter or longer baking time though.

2. Next, pour your serviceberries into the baking dish. Then you’ll mix in lemon juice, flour, maple sugar, nutmeg, and salt until the berries are coated. 

3. Pulverize your pecans in a blender / Ninja. Pour them into a mixing bowl, then add your other DRY crumble ingredients (flour, oats, maple sugar, salt) in a medium bowl. Stir them together then pour in your melted butter. Stir together with a large spoon. 

4. Use your fingers to sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the surface of the serviceberries in your baking dish. 

5. Bake for about 30 minutes on middle oven rack. When done, the crumble will be lightly browned on top and the berries will be bubbly. Remove from the oven and place on cooling rack. 

Eat your serviceberry crumble warm as-is or take it to the next level by topping each serving with homemade whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or something comparable. 

Once cooled, cover the baking dish with an airtight lid and store for up to 1 week. Reheat in the oven or a microwave. Enjoy! 

Recipe: Serviceberry pecan maple crumble

We hope you enjoy this delicious serviceberry dessert recipe as much as we do! 

KIGI,

Other serviceberry articles you’ll want to sink your teeth into: 

• How to grow, forage, and eat serviceberries
• Recipe: Serviceberry cobbler made in a cast iron pan
• Recipe: Crustless serviceberry custard pie
• Recipe: Serviceberry salsa with green cilantro