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Put an autumn coat on your baking with these easy crumble recipes. Have fun
experimenting with different toppings and ingredients in renditions both sweet
and savoury, like this classic apple pudding and a squash and spinach casserole
with a crumbly topping...
You don t need someone like me to tell you that crumble is a delight at this
time of year. Crumble is autumn and autumn is crumble: it s a path so
well-trodden that I m aware of dipping well into clich by choosing it as this
week s theme. Most of us could rustle up a passable apple crumble with neither
recipe, nor scales, nor measuring cups. With that in mind, see the recipes
below not so much as hard-and-fast guides, but just starting points for your
own experiments. I ve used nutty spelt flour and hazelnuts in my apple crumble,
but there s no reason why you shouldn t try almonds, crunchy demerara sugar and
a little rye. Or, play around with different cheeses in the savoury crumble to
top the butternut squash stew, and try booze-laced cherries in place of the
strawberries with the coconut and almond crumble topping below.
▲ Cook s tip: use roughly half butter to flour by weight; be generous with
spices and herbs; don t overdo the sugar.
Nutty spelt apple crumble
I always use cox or braeburn apples in my crumbles, though I know there ll be
those of you who swear by tarter varieties to balance the sweetness of the
topping. The choice is yours, really, and a pudding as homely as crumble is
hardly the place to quibble over such specifics. Just make sure you tweak the
sugar quantities depending on what apples you choose, and steer clear of very
sweet eating apples, such as Pink Ladies, which don t tend to hold up as well
to cooking.
Serves 6
8 cox apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
60g soft light brown sugar
3 tbsp wholemeal spelt flour
tsp cinnamon
tsp ground ginger
For the crumble topping
100g salted butter, cubed, at room temperature
200g wholemeal spelt flour
75g hazelnuts, roasted and chopped
100g soft light brown sugar
75g dark chocolate, cut into small chunks
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Pick out a medium oven dish or tin
roughly 1.5 litre capacity.
2 Prepare the apples. Toss the apples with the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and
ginger.
3 In a mixing bowl, rub the butter into the flour, then stir in the sugar and
chocolate chunks. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the filling in a thick
layer.
4 Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the apple is tender,
the juices bubbling through and the crumble golden brown. Enjoy hot, with a
good vanilla ice-cream.
Two pudding recipes with apples and pears
Read more
Butternut squash and spinach casserole with herbed feta crumble (see an
interactive version here)
Crumble doesn t have to be sweet. Here s a cheesy, herb-flecked version that
you can adapt for more or less any stew or casserole. You could swap the feta
for cheddar or gruyere, add a few pinches of spices or add a handful or
breadcrumbs for a slightly lighter result.
Serves 6
4 tbsp olive oil
4 spring onions, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, finely sliced
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
tsp ground nutmeg
tsp chilli flakes
1 small butternut squash, in 2-3cm chunks
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
500-600ml vegetable stock
400g tin chickpeas
350g fresh spinach
For the topping
200g plain flour
100g butter
200g feta, diced
A bunch of parsley, finely chopped
1 Heat the oil in a large casserole over a low heat, add the spring onions and
fry for 3-4 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add the garlic, cumin,
cinnamon, nutmeg and chilli and cook for 2 minutes, stirring all the while.
Once the spices are fragrant and the garlic sizzling, throw in the squash,
chopped tomatoes and stock, then put a lid on the pan and leave it all to
simmer on a low heat for 15 minutes.
2 When the squash has started to soften, take the lid off and leave it to
bubble for another 5 minutes to reduce the sauce a little. Add the chickpeas
and spinach, stir everything together to wilt the leaves and remove the pan
from the heat. Let it cool a little while you preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas
mark 6 and prepare the crumble.
3 For the crumble topping, measure the flour into a large bowl, then add the
butter and half the feta in small cubes. Rub the fat and cheese into the flour
between your fingertips until there are no visible chunks left, then stir in
the rest of the feta and the parsley.
4 Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the filling (if you don t have an ovenproof
casserole, first decant the butternut squash stew from its pan into a 2 -3
litre oven dish). Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling up
through the crumble and the chunks of feta are blushing golden brown. Serve
straight away with plenty of green veg.
Strawberry almond crisp
I d never send a good strawberry to the oven. The best strawberries the tiny,
dark red early-summer ones, so ripe that they stain your fingers crimson and
fall eagerly from their stems should be enjoyed with no more than a dollop of
softly whipped cream. But when they re out of season, underripe and pallid,
strawberries need a little help. I ve bundled a couple of punnets of them into
an easy crumble, balanced with a splash of balsamic and topped with a buttery,
nut-strewn topping.
Serves 6
600g strawberries
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
75g caster sugar
3 tbsp plain flour
For the crumble topping
75g plain flour
A pinch of salt
40g unsalted butter, in chunks
30g flaked almonds
30g desiccated coconut
40g caster sugar
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Rinse the strawberries, then hull
them and cut into quarters (smaller berries need only be cut in half). Drizzle
the balsamic vinegar over the strawberries, then toss through the sugar and
flour until the fruit are well coated. Tip into a 900g loaf tin.
2 Combine the flour with a good pinch of salt, then rub in the butter, in
chunks, between your fingertips. Once the mixture s sandy in texture, stir
through the flaked almonds, desiccated coconut and caster sugar. Sprinkle the
crumble mix over the fruit in a thick, even layer, then bake in the preheated
oven for 30-35 minutes, until the crimson sweet strawberry juices are bubbling
through, staining the golden crumble top.