Keto rhubarb crisp with a truly crispy topping. This wonderful sugar-free dessert is delicious paired with low carb ice cream or whipped cream.
Most keto fruit crisp recipes suffer from the same common problem: they aren’t actually crisp at all. The topping is too soft and sometimes a little bit soggy.
But what if I told you that this rhubarb crisp recipe is the real deal, with a sweet-tart rhubarb filling and a truly crispy sugar-free, grain-free topping?
How did I do it? Oh, I have my ways and means. And I am more than happy to share my secrets!
Rhubarb crisp is the best!
I first posted this recipe back in 2014, and I decided to give it a bit of an update. It’s just as delicious as it ever was, but now it’s even lower in carbs AND you can have a bigger portion.
The truth is that I am a rhubarb fanatic. I love that tart, bright red stalky vegetable. And yes, it is a vegetable, although people tend to treat it as a fruit. It’s incredibly tart on its own, but cook it down with some sweetener, and it has this incredible and unique flavor.
I have a number of delicious keto rhubarb recipes, such as my rhubarb scones, keto strawberry rhubarb sauce, and rhubarb coffee cake.
But rhubarb crisp has a very special place in my heart. When I was growing up my mother made a to-die-for rhubarb crisp that was one of my childhood favourites. The topping was rich and buttery, with plenty of brown sugar. It’s been my dream to make a keto-friendly rhubarb crisp that could even come close to hers.
And I think I’ve actually done it. Hooray!
How to make keto rhubarb crisp
Fruit crisps are one of my favorite desserts so it was pretty important to me to make a good one. But getting the topping to be truly crisp is tricky.
Almond flour and other low carb ingredients have quite a bit of moisture. They also tend to absorb a lot of moisture when subjected to other ingredients with a high water content. That’s why most keto fruit crisps tend to be soggy.
The solution is actually ridiculously simple
Bake the topping separately from the filling.
It may be unconventional, but trust me, it’s the only way to make a keto crisp. When it finally occurred to me, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it before.
My keto Cinnamon Crunch Cereal was the tip off for me. It crisps up so perfectly and tastes reminiscent of an oatmeal cookie, and that’s when I realized it would be the perfect topping for a fruit crisp.
More tips for keto rhubarb crisp
A few extra tips for getting the perfect rhubarb crisp recipe:
- Choose the reddest stalks of rhubarb that you can find, as they will produce that gorgeous deep pink color. The green rhubarb tastes exactly the same, though!
- Erythritol based sweeteners are a must. No other sweetener will crisp up properly, especially BochaSweet and allulose.
- If you don’t like coconut, feel free to replace that with additional almond flour (in the same amount).
- Really press down that topping firmly before baking. This is what helps get it truly crisp.
- Also know that it won’t seem crisp right out of the oven. But it will continue to crisp up as it cools. As long as you pressed it quite thin and the edges are golden, you should be good.
- Rhubarb is quite juicy when cooked, so use glucomannan to thicken the filling. I prefer this over xanthan gum as it mixes in more easily and doesn’t clump up. (And yes, I really do mean 1/4 teaspoon plus another 1/8th teaspoon).
To store the keto crisp:
Cover any leftovers with foil or plastic wrap. You can store on the counter for two days, or in the fridge for about 5.
The topping will become less crisp as it sits, which happens with any fruit crisp recipe. You could simply keep the filling and topping separate, and only combine them when serving, if you wish.
How to serve keto fruit crisp:
Do yourself a big favor and make some of my keto vanilla ice cream to top the rhubarb crisp. IT IS MAGICAL!
A little whipped cream is nice too, though. I’ve even eaten it for breakfast with a little heavy cream poured overtop.
Ready to enjoy this delicious keto crisp recipe?
Keto Rhubarb Crisp
Ingredients
Crisp Topping:
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/3 cup brown sugar replacement, erythritol-based
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 5 tbsp butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
Rhubarb Filling:
- 2 pounds chopped rhubarb
- 1/3 cup powdered sweetener, (more if you like it sweeter)
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp glucomannan
Instructions
Crisp Topping
- Preheat the oven to 300F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, combine the almond flour, shredded coconut, chopped pecans, sweetener, cinnamon, and salt. Pulse a few times to combine. Sprinkle with the butter pieces and then process until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Spread the mixture on the prepared baking sheet and cover with another piece of parchment. Use a rolling pin or your hands to press down firmly so that the mixture sticks together. Remove the top sheet of paper.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Remove and let cool completely - the mixture will continue to crisp up as it cools.
Rhubarb Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Spread the rhubarb in a 9x13 inch glass or ceramic baking dish and sprinkle with the sweetener and glucomannan. Toss to combine.
- Cover tightly with foil and bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbling and rhubarb is tender.
- Remove the filling from oven and remove foil. Break the cooled topping into pieces with your hand and place over filling to cover completely. Serve warm, topped with whipped cream or keto vanilla ice cream.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Instead of baking the rhubarb in the oven, I cooked it in a pot on top of the stove. This allowed me to check for sweet and tartness often and it basically turns out exactly the same as the oven method. I also used more sweetener as this rhubarb was very very tart. I also used xanthan gum mixed with the sweetener and it worked perfectly. I made the topping exactly as written and it is totally awesome. Thank you for a lovely recipe!
My mother always used eggs to thicken her rhubarb crisp, which would add protein too. Just an idea to try since you are always looking for ways to bump up the protein! I think I will try this recipe. I have green rhubarb, so I toss a few strawberries of huckleberries in for color.
Interesting!
Can not wait to be able to try this one- my family Loves rhubarb! We have lived in Portugal almost 3y and I have fine combed the country! Fair amount of ‘gluten free’ options available.. but no apparent concern or knowledge about Low Carb, like anything. So, can Not find adequate ingradients here (except corse almond & coconut flour here. So, we make due being otherwise creative at home and embrace what we can. But- first next visit to States.. rhubarb should be perfect and awaiting! Thank you Carolyn!
It is hard in other countries, not having availability of so many ingredients.
For anyone wanting to make an individual portion, you could make a fraction of the quantity (using just 1Tbs almond flour) and cook it in the microwave for a minute or so. As it cools it crisps beautifully. Meanwhile I keep the cooked fruit in the freezer.
It takes a couple of minutes to warm up the frozen fruit, and another couple of minutes to make the crisp which can then be broken up and sprinkled on top. I serve it with a bit of Greek yoghurt to which I’ve added a drop of vanilla and sweetener. As I’m a bit older and need to keep calories in check, I eat this in place of a meal, maybe once a week, often Sunday evening. It’s healthy and delicious and a real treat.
I haven’t yet tried it with rhubarb but am planning to follow your recipe. Thank you so much.
I especially liked the crispy topping. I stored it in a plastic container and it stayed crispy. I’ll use that recipe for other crisps.
Hello,
Is this supposed to be made with brown sugar substitute now that Swerve has allulose? Just in case anyone else is reading, I made the brown sugar substitute with Dolce Flav caramel flavoring, it was so disgusting I had to throw it all away, and it was a double recipe. I will be ordering the Olive Nation brand that Carolyn used, hoping for a better outcome.
Maybe it’s me, but I doubled the sweetener and this was still just incredibly tart. And the sauce didn’t thicken enough with the amount of Konjac root indicated. the topping also took far longer to bake than suggested. My oven is properly calibrated. My recommendation is to not let the topping sit on the baking pan to cool. Instead, transfer it (while on the parchment) to a cooling rack. It will crisp up better. The topping is delicious.
Wow!
I tried this recipe but I did something unexpected:
I FOLLOWED THE ORIGINAL RECIPE! 😉
It was incredible!!! The crisp portion of the recipe looks dry ) if you use very cold butter- which you should!
Trust the process! It’s wonderful!
I want to make up a big batch of the crisp and freeze for treats all summer! In fact, the Cherry festival is this weekend!
OMG, I love this comment so much!
What size baking pan do you use for the crisp topping & how thin do you roll it? Thank you. Anxious to try this!
Just a large pan will do. You want it to be about 1/4 inch thick.
Great recipe. I made it three times last year…more coming this year. I can’t do most sugar subs…horrible aftertaste (even Stevia). Swerve I get no aftertaste. Worth the extra money.
The topping is so good that I do a triple batch and use the extra to make snack bars (roll thicker and cook slightly longer). Huge hit with everyone. We take the bars hiking. Thanks for the double recipe!!!
I baked the topping on the fruit and it was soooo good!
I’m allergic to almonds so almond flour is not a viable solution for me. do you have an alternative you would suggest for this recipe?
Not for this recipe, no.
Try cashew flour or macadamia nut flour. Both are suitable substitutes for almond flour.
Except they aren’t really. Cashew flour has a ton of carbs compared to almond flour. And macadamias have way more oil and they don’t grind up as finely. So they aren’t a great sub, although they may work okay in this recipe.