PUDDING - SUMMER CRUMBLE

Pears, apples and blackberries foraged for a fruitful crumble.

I know it's a controversial topic...but in my opinion, crumble over pie any day.

Crumble is a wonderfully wild and simple fruit recipe. A two to one ratio of crumble to fruit is my definitely my preference! Lets be honest, the crisp, buttery crumb topping is the best part :)

 SUMMER CRUMBLE RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE COMPOTE:

3-4 apples

2 heaped tablespoons of sugar  (Demerara, caster or coconut sugar work as sugar alternatives)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

150g blackberries (other fruit such as pears, berries or plums work well as alternatives)

Knob of butter

FOR THE TOPPING:

120g plain flour

60g brown sugar (demerara, caster or coconut sugar work as sugar alternatives)

60g chilled butter cut into cubes

METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 5. 
• Pour in 120g plain flour and 60g brown sugar into a large bowl. (Demerara, caster or coconut sugar work as sugar alternatives)
• Add 60g of cubed hard butter. 
• Rub the butter into the flour to make a light breadcrumb texture. Do not overwork the mixture or the crumble will become too thick.  Tip - use chilled butter and only your fingertips to make the crumble as this is the coolest part of your hand. Set aside.
• Meanwhile prepare the fruit compote. Peel and core 3-4 apples. Dice them into 2cm pieces.
• Add in 150g of blackberries (other fruit such as pears, berries or plums work well as alternatives)
• Put a knob of butter and two large tablespoons of sugar in a saucepan. Add in the fruit and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Melt together over a medium heat. Cook and stir for 5-8 minutes until the sugar turns to a light caramel and the fruit softens a little.
• Transfer the compote mix into a deep heatproof tray/dish. The fruit compote should fill up at least a ⅓ of the dish.
• Allow the compote mixture to cool down before sprinkling the crumble mixture on top. Do not pack the crumble mixture down, let it simply sit loosely on top of the fruit.
• Sprinkle an extra ½ tablespoon of sugar on top for an extra caramelised crunch.
• Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the crumble is browned and the fruit compote is bubbling.
• Enjoy with a dollop of cream, custard, ice-cream or whatever tickles your fancy!

Our homemade crumble with apple and blackberries foraged from Mama Earth.

Served with a generous splash of double cream, it was simply perfect.

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Moni Dajee, founder of The London Alchemists - artist, creator, explorer, beekeeper and avid practitioner of natural alchemy.