Windfall Apple Crumble

Having your own apple tree means crumble is a regular feature at the dinner table.

And who's complaining?

This year, I wanted to improve upon my apple, damson and blackberry crumble recipe, and to create a warming, delicious crumble that would beat the rest. With a few adjustments here and there, I think we're now onto a winner. This tastes so good with lashings of warm, vanilla custard - but a dollop of clotted cream wouldn't go amiss either...

The beauty of it is you can use the fruits which are a bit battered and bruised, and which you wouldn't really fancy putting in your lunchbox - hence Windfall Apple Crumble!

This time, I haven't baked the topping first like I did in the previous recipe. Both produce yummy results, so why not try both and see which you prefer?

Ingredients (Makes 1 medium crumble - about 6 big servings - with some topping left over to freeze)

Topping

120g plain flour

40g caster sugar

20g soft brown sugar or demerara sugar

60g unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small cubes

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tbsp rolled porridge oats

1 tbsp demerara sugar

Filling

~450g eating apples; peeled, cored and chopped into small chunks

30g unsalted butter

30g demerara sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

A small handful of cloves

Equipment

1 x ovenproof dish

Large mixing bowl

Saucepan

Method

1. Pre-heat your oven to 190C/170C fan/gas mark 5. Make the topping first: tip your flour and sugars together in a large bowl, then add the cubes of unsalted butter. Rub the ingredients together with your tips of your fingers, rubbing the flour into the butter. You want to make a light breadcrumb mixture {which looks a bit like sand}. Add your cinnamon and mix it in.

2. Now for the filling; add the butter and sugar to your saucepan, and melt together over a medium heat. After a few minutes it will start to look like caramel. Add the cinnamon and your cloves - I usually add about 8 cloves, and am sure to pick them out at the end of step 3, as I hate biting into a surprise clove while enjoying my crumble... They do however add a stunning flavour to the filling, so don't miss them out!

3. Add your apples to the caramel mixture and cook for about 6-7 minutes. The fruit will begin to soften, and the caramel will thicken. Cover and remove from the heat. Pick out your cloves if necessary!

4. Spoon your filling into an ovenproof dish, then add your topping. The quantities above ensure that you have topping left over for the next time you make a crumble - simply put it into a freezer bag, and it can be used next time you make a crumble, straight from frozen. This makes it an easy mid-week recipe, as all you have to do then is whip up the filling. 

5. Sprinkle the rolled porridge oats and demerara sugar over the top to make the topping crunchy and delicious. This can now sit on the side for a bit if you have a main dish to cook. When you're ready, re-heat in the oven for around 35 mins, until the topping is a lovely golden colour and the filling is bubbling at the sides. 

6. This step is optional, but last time we had the crumble Mr MM placed it under the grill for a few minutes so that some of the topping got extra brown and crispy. I think it makes it even more tasty, but this is completely up to you and your crumble preferences...

Let me know if you make this one, and send me your snaps either on Twitter or Instagram!

Image of country kitchen kindly provided by The Cotswold Company.