The other day my next door neighbour send me over some apples that she couldn't use. I already had a few apples of my own so I decided to combine the two and make a tasty dessert that both of us could share. (I broke it up into two baking dishes.)
I love cooking with apples and apple desserts. One of my favourite apple desserts has to be Apple Crumble. Or Apple Crisp as it is also called!
My neighbour was happyher apples were going to be used. Todd was happy he was going to get an apple dessert. It was a win/win.
Apple desserts are Todd's favourite desserts of all time. He just loves it when I make him an apple dessert.
When it comes to an apple dessert you can't get much better than an apple crumble. I like the ones with the Oats in the crumble most of all.
For some reason they seem more wholesome, and almost healthier . . . although they really aren't. Sugar is sugar. But we won't think about that right now.
Ingredients are being rationed in our house at the moment. Things like flour and sugar are in limited supply and I am not sure when I will be able to get more. Thank you Pandemic 2020.
Any dessert or bake where I can cut the use of the flour down by mixing it with oats is a good choice for us. Who knows how long it will be before we can get some.
I don't know about you, but when it comes to a crumble its all about the topping! That streusel topping is what makes the whole dessert!
I love the crisp butteriness of them. I love the chewy bits on the edges. I love that wholesome flavour of the oats. There is just nothing about the streusel topping that I don't love!
I have to say I prefer streusel toppings that contain oats more than the plain ones. They are just more toothsome and have an almost nutty flavour!
When I was child my mother could not get me to eat oatmeal for breakfast. Not for love nor money. Clearly she should have been trying to get me eat streusel with oats instead of oatmeal! She might have had more success!!
That's my story and I'm sticking to it! To me enjoying an apple crumble is having a tasty oatmeal cookie crumbled over a delicious fruit filling.
Who can possibly resist that? Not me, that's who! And I won't be lying to you. My hips know it.
You want to use a really nice flavoured apple in this dessert. Today I used a mixture of Pink Ladies, Granny Smiths and another eating apple. They worked together beautifully!
They were a lovely mix of sweet and tart. Normally for baking tart apples work the best because they break down the best, but this is a great combination also.
You want to use apples that are going to maintain their integrity in the bake. You don't want apples that are going to lose their texture completely.
At the same time you want apples that will cook through and not be hard. Its nice to have some chunks, but not hard chunks. You want your teeth to be able to melt down into the chunks if that makes sense.
The use of orange and lemon zests adds an additional layer of flavour to the filling along with their juices. This helps to keep the colour of the apples pure as well.
Not that I am bothered about seeing brown apples in a crumble. Its really the taste of them that matters most.
There is also some cinnamon and nutmeg for additional flavour. All of these flavours go very well together.
Lemon, orange, cinnamon, apples. The combination makes for a very delicious filling indeed. I just love it.
What you serve it with is up to you. All we had on this particular day was cream. You can also enjoy this wish warm custard sauce, or scoops of vanilla ice cream (my favourite!).
Todd is a fan of the custard sauce or cream. I do have to say that most warm desserts here in the UK are served with the option of both or one or the other. I thought it was really strange when I first moved over here, but it is an option I quickly warmed to.
Yield: 6
Oaty Apple Crumble
This is an amazingly delicious apple crumble. With its crisp oaty topping and cinnamon apple filling, this crumble is everything a good apple crumble should be.
Ingredients:
For the topping:
- 105g plain flour (3/4 cup)
- 75g granulated sugar (1/3 cup)
- 80g soft light brown sugar (1/3 cup)
- 40g porridge oats (1/2 cup)
- 120g butter, chilled and cut into cubes (1/2 cup)
- pinch salt
For the filling:
- 2 1/2 pounds well flavoured apples
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 TBS lemon juice
- the zest of 1/2 orange
- 1 TBS orange juice
- 50g granulated sugar (1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
To serve: (Optional)
- pouring cream
- custard
- vanilla ice cream
Instructions:
How to cook Oaty Apple Crumble
- First make the crumble topping. Measure the flour into a bowl along with both sugars and the oats. Stir in the salt and drop in the butter. Rub the butter into the flour mixture until you have a coarse crumbly mixture. Alternately you can blitz in a food process until you have a crumbly mixture with bits the size of small peas.
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square deep baking dish.
- Peel the apples, core and cut into wedges. Put them into a bowl along with the remaining filling ingredients. Toss together to coat well. Pour into the buttered baking dish. Sprinkle the crumble topping over top evenly.
- Place on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes to an hour, until the apples are soft and bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown.
- Serve warm, spooned into bowls along with some cold ice cream, pouring cream or vanilla custard.
Well, this is a different Easter weekend than we all planned on having this year I reckon. At least the weather is nice. Don't let that tempt you to go out travelling however.
Lets all be reponsible and stay home so that we can help our Health Care System out. I know that we are all a bit bored now with this staying home lark, but trust me, it will be worth it in the long run.
This won't last forever and before too long (God willing) it will be nothing more than a bad memory. Stay home. Stay safe. Stay healthy and Happy Easter.
Hey, oats are fiber so they DO make the topping healthier! (If you can call something with all that butter healthy, LOL.) You could say that the oats help the apples keep the doctor away. I don't even bother with doctoring up the apples when I make crisps (as we call them in my neck of the woods). The apples I use are sweet anyway, and as you say, the topping is the real show.
ReplyDeleteStay safe and have a blessed Easter! The worship "services" may consist of VERY small groups, but wherever two or three are gathered....
I like the way your mind works Marty! Yes, the topping is the real show. We are having church in our own homes, and have been doing so for probably two months now. We can also hook up with each other via video links, etc. Yes, wherever two or three are gathered. Happy Easter. xoxo
DeleteLove apple crumble and adding oats makes it heathy, well the oat part anyways :)
ReplyDeleteWe won't think about the other things Linda! lol xoxo
DeleteOne of my all top favorite desserts (eyeing the apples on my counter now...)
ReplyDeleteOh, I hope you will give it a go Katy! xoxo
DeleteI have all these ingredients. This might well be in next week's rotation!
ReplyDeleteYou are both in for a real treat Jeanie! xoxo
Delete