Blackberry Crisp With Cardamom Custard Sauce Recipe (2024)

Tips for using cardamom:* It's the 3rd priciest spice after saffron & vanilla, but potent when used appropriately.* Instead of wastefully using 1 tb whole seeds and straining, powder 1 tsp with mortar/pestle or dry grinder (here, with some sugar to bulk up grinder's contents).* Intact seeds/pods keep for 1-2 yrs+. Powder turns into sawdust rapidly, so make just what you need. (Cardamom sugar, like vanilla bean kept in sugar, lasts longer than plain powder.)

Was delicious but more like fruit soup with a delicious, temporarily crunchy topping. Seriously, it needs some thickening agent in the fruit- cornstarch or flour or something. This recipe was great (made with blackberries and 1/4 raspberries) but the whole dish is a purple liquid. Next time I will toss some cornstarch or tapioca with the fruit.

I used 2tbs of cornstarch to thicken it up and it came out with beautiful consistency. The cardamom and cream is a divine combo. I also cut out roughly 25g of sugar at each stage and it was still perfectly sweet.

Rave reviews from my guests. I used a mixture of peaches and blackberries and a smidge more cardamom than the recipe called for.

RE: Ground cardamom vs seeds: Depends on how old or fresh it is. If it's reasonably fresh, 1 tsp in the cardamom sauce should be fine (don't waste time straining the sauce).

Delicious! Used 1/3 each blackberries, blueberries and peaches. 1/4 cup light brown sugar and 1/4 cup white sugar for topping. Added 3 tablespoons of topping to fruit to thicken and only about 1/3 cup sugar. Just so good!

I wish I had have read these notes prior to baking this. I ended up with a berry soup with a crunchy top. While delicious - I'm very surprised that this recipe does not call for a thickening agent for the crisp. Seems like an oversight - will definitely heed Cynthia's advice and try using cornstarch next time. Custard didn't come out either. I followed the directions (this was my first custard). Substituted with a cardamon whipped cream - YUM.TLDR: Read the notes before cooking a recipe here.

I only have ground cardamom....can you suggest what Quantity I add in place of the seeds or pods?

Like many others, I decreased the sugar content after reading the comments - 1/3c per component - and added 2 Tbsp. corn starch to the filling. The result was fabulous - simple, delicious, and elegant. The amount of custard is a lot for the amount of pasty. I think this component could easily be halved. Knowing I’ll have leftovers, I’ll pour it over fresh strawberries or maybe even use it as a coffee creamer. It’s that good.

10/10. I halved the recipe and it was absolutely delicious. Perfect end of summer treat.

I make a lot of crisps and they generally call for a tablespoon or 2 of flour, that's what i would add. Just look at another berry crisp recipe if you need exact amount.

Had an all David Tanis dinner tonight, with his Summer Vegetables with Spicy Yogurt Sauce for dinner, and this delightful crisp for dessert. Like others have suggested, I cut the sugar down to 1/3 cup for each of the steps instead of 1/2 cup, and I used brown sugar for the topping because I ran out of granulated. Also added 2 Tbsp of corn starch to the fruit (half blackberries, half peaches) and macerated overnight in the fridge. Everyone loved it and raved about the cardamom custard sauce.

If you sprinkle a few tablespoons of the prepared crust in with the berries, that will thicken it up.

Frankly, it may have been the fault of the berries, but I found the dessert to be too sweet. Next time around I would use far less sugar on the berries as they bake. Also, less sugar in the crumble, which was... boring. I will use a mixture of flour, oats, and nuts in the crumble, or completely omit and just serve the berries with the sauce, which was sublime.

This was great! A few things I tried out:- Instead of adding sugar to the berries I added a spoonful of berry jam which helped thicken the mixture nicely. - I used a non-dairy creamer instead of half-and-half and it worked well for the sauce.- I used one cup of berries and cut the topping and sauce by 1/3 to bake in two ramekins for a smaller amount

Amending my previous comment, let it cool and it’s not too soupy! Amazing. I topped with toasted pecans and whipped cream plus the custard sauce. Heavenly.

Great but only 4 stars because yes, it’s soupy. But fabulous sauce. Used brown sugar, used less. In the amazing custard sauce I added a whole vanilla bean pod scraped, and whirled it all in blender, partly cooled to avoid steam explosion, then strained which let the flavorful vanilla seeds remain in the custard. Delightful. Served with a dollop of whipped cream and lemon zest.

We loved this. The sauce was perfect with the berries. I will increase the crumbly topping by a third to make up for some of the fruit liquid. Thank you for a great dessert we will have again!

Ratios were perfect using wild blackberries. The tiny smidge of cardamom (I crushed seeds from 1 pod with the butt end of a kitchen knife) in the crust is next level. Skipped the sauce, used plain whipped cream for simplicity. Family says it was the best dessert ever.

Added some cornstarch and extra cardamom seeds, easy and delicious

Tasty and easy! I love how it uses so much fruit. I used 1/3 cup sugar for each step, and it was still quite sweet. 1/4 cup next time. Used our backyard wild blackberries and some raspberries. I added 2T corn starch to crisp (so it's not soupy). I used 1t of cardamom powder in sauce recipe instead of seeds or pods (avoided staining step). Could probably get by with 1/2 of sauce recipe.

This is great! I used blueberries and raspberries.

Try other fruits with cinnamon or other spices. Don’t double sauce. Try cornstarch to thicken sauce

My family is blown away by this recipe! They love it and it's now in the regular rotation for "company" dessert.

Loved this recipe. I followed several comments and cut the sugar in all the steps by 25 grams and added 1 tablespoon of corn starch to the filling. Turned out perfectly. I used all blackberries and served it at room temperature and it was not soupy. The sauce is wonderful and the recipe makes more than needed for the crisp but the leftover is great cold poured over a fruit salad; very refreshing.

Wow, what a delicious dessert. I didn't have any soupiness and thought the filling was pretty thick, but I'm at a high altitude and baked at 375 for a little longer. I am legitimately considering planting a blackberry bush so I can make this regularly--berries are pricy and don't grow wild much in my desert climate! The cardamom adds such a unique depth to it, will absolutely be making for a crowd.

Any tips for making custard? Mine never thickened

Just perfect.

Added approximately 1Tbls cornstarch to thicken custard sauce.

The custard sauce is so good. Made it twice. First time it took 8 mins to thicken and I had to turn the heat up a bit. Second time, I whisked the h/h into the egg yolks and then kept whistling for a bit before adding it back into the rest of the h/h. And it thickened right up in 3 1/2 mins! Both times tasted great.