Gluten-Free Cranberry Crumble with a grain-free option! This dairy-free and refined sugar-free cranberry dessert recipe is the perfect Thanksgiving dessert for those who love a fruit option. Don’t forget the vanilla ice cream!
If you have followed The Roasted Root for a while, you’ve been exposed to all sorts of gluten-free and grain-free crumbles, cobblers, and crisps.
My Gluten-Free Blueberry Crumble and my Almond Flour Strawberry Crumble being two of my favorites.
What can I say? A fruit dessert never fails to impress!
This quick and easy gluten-free cranberry crumble comes together lightning fast with very little prep time and no fancy maneuvers.
You can have absolutely zero baking experience and still have success with this easy cranberry crisp recipe.
There’s no need to separate dry ingredients from wet ingredients, and no stand mixer, pie pan, or pastry cutter is needed!
I typically only add a few tablespoons of pure maple syrup to fruit filling in crumble recipes because most fruit contain enough natural sweetness that a lot of excess sugar isn’t necessary.
Cranberries are a bit different because they are very tart and aren’t very sweet. Due to the tartness of the cranberries, I add more pure maple syrup than I would otherwise.
If your family enjoys very sweet treats, be sure to add some brown sugar, coconut sugar, or cane sugar to the filling so that it is sweet enough to your personal taste.
This simple gluten-free cranberry crumble recipe serves 4 large servings or 6 small servings.
If you’re serving more individuals, you want leftovers, or if you have some big dessert eaters in the family, consider doubling or tripling the recipe and use a large casserole dish.
Let’s go over the simple ingredients list for gluten-free cranberry crumble.
Ingredients for Gluten-Free Cranberry Crumble:
Fresh or Frozen Cranberries: The star of the show! Pick up some fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries from the produce section or the freezer section of the grocery store. You will need 4 cups, which is roughly one 16-ounce bag.
If you’re using frozen cranberries, thaw them completely before preparing the recipe. To do so, you can transfer them to a microwave-safe bowl and defrost them in the microwave, or defrost them overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
Pure Maple Syrup: Used to sweeten both the cranberry filling and the crumble topping. If you like sweeter desserts, consider adding 1 to 4 tablespoons of brown sugar to the cranberry filling. Remember that cranberries are naturally very tart.
Ground Cinnamon & Orange Zest: Adding cinnamon to the cranberry filling and the gluten-free crumb topping brings a lovely warmth to complement the otherwise tart dessert.
I like adding some orange zest to the cranberry filling because orange and cranberry pair nicely together but this isn’t mandatory.
Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour: Used for the crumble topping in place of regular all-purpose flour, we need a gluten-free flour blend.
I like using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour, but any brand should work. Just note that the results vary depending on the brand.
Coconut Oil (or Butter): To add richness and deliciousness to the crumble topping, we need some form of fat like coconut oil or butter.
I prefer butter when serving guests who aren’t dairy-free because the flavor is creamier. If you go with butter, use 4 tablespoons instead of 3, as coconut oil is greasier than butter.
Melted vegan butter such as Earth Balance butter works here too.
Vanilla Extract and Almond Extract: If you have pure vanilla extract on hand, be sure to add it to the cobbler topping mixture for warm flavor. I also like adding a small amount of almond extract for added nuance but this is optional.
Sea Salt: A pinch of salt enhances all of the flavors in the fruit mixture and the crumb topping.
Recipe Adaptations:
- To make the recipe lower in added sweetener, consider reducing the amount of pure maple syrup to ½ cup, add ¼ cup of orange juice and 1 chopped sweet apple such as a gala apple, pink lady, or Fuji apple to the cranberry mixture. I don’t recommend using a tart apple such as a granny smith for the best results because that will add more sour flavor to the already tart cranberries. Sweet apples are the best apples here.
- You can replace the gluten-free flour with 2 cups of almond flour for a grain-free option. You can also use tapioca flour or arrowroot starch in the cranberry filling instead of GF flour to make the whole recipe paleo.
- For a sweet dessert, follow the recipe as written, but add an additional 1 to 3 tablespoons of brown sugar to the cranberry filling.
- If you aren’t gluten-free, you can use regular flour for the cobbler topping, but note that you may need to add more oil or butter depending on the consistency of the dough.
- Oat flour can be used as a substitute for the gluten-free flour blend; however, the texture of the topping doesn’t turn out as nice so I don’t recommend this method for serving guests.
- If you have two cups of leftover homemade cranberry sauce, you can use it instead of making the homemade cranberry filling mixture. If you use leftover cranberry sauce, you won’t need to bake the crumble as long.
- If you love oatmeal, use 3/4 cup of gluten-free flour and 1/2 cup of gluten-free oats in the fruit crisp topping. You can use rolled oats or quick oats.
The way I see it, this is the perfect gluten-free dessert to share with family members who are celiac, have a gluten intolerance or various dietary restrictions.
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s make this easy gluten-free cranberry crumble recipe.
How to Make Gluten-Free Cranberry Crumble:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Add all of the ingredients for the cranberry filling to a large mixing bowl and mix everything together until the ingredients are well-combined.
Pour the cranberry filling into the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan, or small baking dish in an even layer.
Add all of the ingredients for the gluten-free crumble topping to a large bowl and stir well until a thick cookie dough-like substance forms.
If the dough seems dry or crumbly, add more melted coconut oil or melted butter one tablespoon at a time, until it resembles a thick dough.
Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the cranberry layer. I like to leave the crumble topping fairly chunky.
Bake crumble on the center rack of the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the crisp topping is golden brown and the cranberry filling is bubbly.
Remove crumble from the oven and serve immediately with a scoop of ice cream.
Store leftover crumble in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
So there you have it! A delicious cranberry dessert that the whole family can enjoy. Make this easy recipe during the holiday season for all your gatherings, including your Thanksgiving table.
While cranberry desserts are a classic Thanksgiving dish, you can easily prepare this simple dessert recipe no matter the time of year. Just use frozen cranberries, as fresh cranberries can be difficult to find year round.
If you love cranberry dessert recipes, also try my Vegan Cranberry Crumb Bars.
A great fruit crisp bringing color to the Thanksgiving table, this gluten free cranberry apple crisp is the best way to enjoy cranberries during the holiday season.
For those of you who are looking for more holiday dessert recipes, here are some of my personal favorites.
Holiday Dessert Recipes:
- Healthy Apple Crisp
- Paleo Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Silky Sweet Potato Pie
- Healthy Pumpkin Pie
- Paleo Pecan Pie Bars
- Keto Chocolate Pie
- Healthy Sweet Potato Brownies
- Gluten-Free Pear Crumble
The perfect balance of sweet, sour, rich and buttery flavors in one spot!
Gluten-Free Cranberry Crumble
Equipment
Ingredients
Cranberry Filling:
- 4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp orange zest optional
- 1 Tbsp gluten-free all-purpose flour*
- Pinch sea salt
Crumble Topping:
- 3 Tbsp coconut oil melted**
- 5 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour ***
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract optional
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon optional
- ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add all of the ingredients for the cranberry filling to a large mixing bowl and mix everything together until the ingredients are well-combined.
- Pour the cranberry filling into the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan, or small baking dish in an even layer.
- Add all of the ingredients for the gluten-free crumble topping to a large bowl and stir well until a thick cookie dough-like substance forms. If the dough seems dry or crumbly, add more melted coconut oil or melted butter one tablespoon at a time, until it resembles a thick dough.
- Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the cranberry layer. I like to leave the crumble topping fairly chunky.
- Bake crumble on the center rack of the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the crisp topping is golden brown and the cranberry filling is bubbly.
- Remove crumble from the oven and serve immediately with a scoop of ice cream.
Notes
Nutrition
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This is a fantastic holiday recipe that can easily adapted with other ingredients. I cut down on the cranberries and added sliced apples. Also, I have a hard time with GF flours. I guess it depends on the brand. So I did whole oats, whole almonds, and walnuts as the topping with the rest of the ingredients. It was divine. So even though it wasn’t exact, we sure enjoyed it.
All of that sounds so amazing, Angela! Thank you for sharing! The topping sounds absolutely divine 😉 xoxo Happy Holidays!