This afternoon I had a hankering for something sweet. I don’t always make desserts, but today was definitely a dessert day! Unfortunately there was nothing I could shovel straight into my mouth to satisfy my sweet cravings, so I decided to cobble something together.
The ingredients that I used were basically ingredients that I had lying around and I am rather happy how well it turned out. This recipe can be adapted to suit whatever you have lying about too! I used normal gala apples, tinned pears and some juicy blackberries that I had stored in the bottom of my freezer – leftovers from our foraging escapades last summer! Other flavours that would taste great are peaches, raspberries and apples, or rhubarb and blackberries! I didn’t pre-cook the fruit as I wanted the filling to have some definition. The cornflour thickens the filling as it bakes – don’t worry you can’t taste it! I sprinkled simple flavourings over the fruit – vanilla and mixed spice. I am obsessed with vanilla powder. You can use it in everything and has a purer taste than extract (which I also love). I literally use vanilla powder in everything – cupcakes, smoothies, puddings…its seriously good.
Now I will admit, when it comes to crumbles in the past I have generally used those packets of ready-made stuff. They were super convenient when you needed a pudding in a hurry. But this topping took so little time – I really don’t think I will use the prepackaged stuff again! The pecans and coconut sugar gave the topping a delicious caramel flavour. Whilst the ground almonds provided a natural sweetness. So so good. If you find you have too much topping then bag it up and freeze it. It should keep for about 6 months.
I served my crumble with homemade yogurt drizzled with a bit of honey, but it would also taste great with custard or ice cream! Enjoy!
Ingredients:
Filling:
- 3 gala apples peeled, cored and sliced.
- 1 tin of natural pears in juice, drained.
- 1 cup berries (I used blackberries)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla powder
- 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice
- 1/4 cup of natural sweetener – like Xylitol, stevia or cane sugar if you prefer.
- 1 tbsp cornflour
Crumble:
- 1 cup of Oats
- 1/4 cup ground almonds
- 1/4 cup plain flour
- 1 handful pecan nuts
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 100g butter or coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla powder
- 1 tsp mixed spice
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 6. Layer all the fruit in an oven proof dish and scatter over the top the cornflour, sweetener and vanilla powder.
- In a food processor add the crumble mixture. Pulse until you have a rough mixture and the ingredients are combined.
- Scatter the topping over the top of the fruit and bake for 30 minutes or until the top of the crumble is brown and crispy.
- Serve with either yogurt, custard or ice cream!
The Brighton Kitchen 