Apple Crumble

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dolphinesque

Assistant Cook
Joined
Dec 9, 2004
Messages
28
anybody got any good apple crumble recipes? went out to dinner saturday night and had best apple crumble ever....apple slices were in layers and not pre cooked so that they werent over cooked mmmmmmmmm
 
Mmmm Apple Crumble, absolutely delicious. There is only one way you can improve on that, Apple and Rhubarb Crumble, oh yeah! :).

Damn summer sometimes does have its downfalls, hot comfort food is not as inviting, even though it can be served cold, having the oven on isn't attractive.

Will post recipe later when I find it.
 
thanx haggis. you are right apple and rhubarb is certainly the way to go...dont have any growing at the moment (rhubarb that is) :(
 
I use a crumble topping on lots of fruits - plums, apples, rhubarb, apricot etc...


Crumble mix
10 oz plain flour, sieved pinch of salt
6oz unrefined brown sugar
7oz unsalted butter, cubed at room temperature
Knob of butter for greasing


1lb apples, peeled, cored and sliced
2oz unrefined brown sugar
1 tbsp plain flour
1 pinch of ground cinnamon

Mix the last three ingredients together.

Preheat the oven to 350F/Gas 4.

Place the flour and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Place the fruit in a large bowl and sprinkle with the sugar/flour/cinnamon mix. Gently mix so that the fruit is coated.

Butter a 9in ovenproof dish. Spoon the fruit mixture into the bottom, then sprinkle the crumble mixture on top.

Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the crumble is browned.

Serve with thick cream or custard.
 
I think the best kind of crumble mix is with oats in it, it just goes nice and crunchy and...well...crumbly :P. And perhaps some shredded/dessicated coconut.

I know how you feel about the availability of rhubarb Dolphinesque. In winter its like AU$5 a bunch, which is when you want it most. So in the summer when its really dirt cheap, I wash the stalks, dry them thouroughly cut them into 2.5cm/1 inch bits then freeze them in a single layer on a tray then put them into freezer bags or sealable containers. Works great!

This one is interesting, the passionfruit and rhubarb go well together even though it isn't a regular pairing of flavours. I prefer to stew my fruit a bit before baking to make it go that little bit extra soft, but there are those that prefer a bit of fruity crunch still. To each their own.

Rhubarb and Passionfruit Crumbles
---------------------------------

6 stalks rhubarb, chopped
1/3 cup passionfruit pulp
250g strawberries, hulled and halved
1/4 cup caster sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup plain flour
90g butter, softened
1 tsp ground cinnamon


Preheat oven to 160'C. Combine rhubarb, passionfruit, strawberries and sugar in a bowl and divide between 6x1cup capacity ramekins or one large dish.

To make the topping combine brown sugar, oats, flour, butter and cinnamon. Spoon topping on to the top of the fruit and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden and the fruit is soft.
 
What a coincidence! I just made apple crumble yesterday for the first time in eons.

I googled for a recipe. For the topping: it was approximately one cup each of butter, flour and sugar. A pinch of soda and salt. I added a handfull of granola for some crunch.

The apples were peeled, cored and sliced. I then mixed it with a mixture of brown sugar, white sugar and cinnamon. I changed the recipe as I wanted more brown sugar than white and lots more cinnamon.

Grease oven dish. put apples in. cover with topping. I put it on in spoonfuls. It was pretty stiff. Cook for 55 minutes, approx.

the family loved it and it was all gone within the hour.


Pam
 
OK, I make mine by eyeballing so my measurements may be screwy, but here goes my take on it all.

6 apples peeled and sliced as you like (if you want slices use a mandolin for even sizing)
2/3 cup butter softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oatmeal (any type)
1/2 flour
cinnamon if you like it

Mix sugar, butter and oats together until crumbs are about pea sized. Use a pastry blender or if you are like me, your hands. Mix about 1/3 of the crumb stuff in with the apples. Then dump the rest on top and bake at 350 for about an hour.

I also make this mixed with rhubarb, or just with rhubarb, it is FABULOUS.
 
thanx guys...really appreciate all your help. Never thought of freezing rhubarb, Haggis. You guys come up with the best ideas :)
 
It freezes really well due to the relatively low moisture content, and stores for about a year, possibly more.

This summer I have been freezing a lot of seasonal fruit. Managed to pick up a box of 20-odd mangoes for AU$4. There was no way only my dad and I could eat all of them since the rest of the family was away. I peeled them, cut the cheeks off and freezed them in bags, then I got the rest of the flesh off the seed, pureed it with a little water then froze them in ice-cube trays. Great for popping a couple into a blender for a frappe, smoothy or lassi.

Also started freezing berries when I saw them going cheap (which isn't saying much in Australia, everything but strawberries are so ridiculously expensive). This way I have a nice little stockpile for Christmas and Boxing Day without having to pay the increased prices stores have just before Christmas. Some people turn their noses up at frozen fruit, expecting a gooey mass but that is only due to the fact that a) alot of companies pre-cook the fruit before they freeze them and b) miss handling squashes them prior to freezing.
 
you are so resourseful Haggis...can you freeze peaches and nectarines by just putting them in the freezer.I was wondering if I need to buy one of those thingys to extract the air from the bags?????????
 
I don't bother with that air-extration machine. You could just try to squeeze out as much as as possible, but it's not that important I don't think.

I am unsure about the peaches and nectarines...You are talking about just whacking the whole fruit in the freeze yes? I would be inclined to peeling them, cut in half and destone, then either freeze the halves, or slice them as thinly as you like.

I got some links, alot of them advise covering in sugar and other assorted things. I think if you just lined a metal tray with baking/silicone paper, cut the peaches (or nectarines etc) to desired size, put them on the tray in a single layer (so they dont stick together) and lightly brush with lemon juice then freeze them they should be ok. The only thing is due to the juicy nature of soft fruit you may find it sticks to the paper. After they have frozen just put them in airtight containers or sealable bags.

http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/mod01/01600394.html
http://www.seasonalchef.com/preserves12.htm
http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1923,153186-247193,00.html
 
I didn't realise you were in Oz Haggis, whereabouts??? I am a Tasmanian lost in England!!!!

Nectarines and peaches are best frozen as Haggis suggested, they will want to be cooked on defrosting, as they will be a bit squidgy and unappetising!

We get gorgeous rhubarb here, especially the pink forced rhubarb. Haggis don't moan about the price of berries til you see the prices in England, horrendous! I used to pick my own in Oz, especially raspberries, yum!
 
I'm from Sydney as well.

Wow, that was unexpected about the price of berries in the UK! I had always dreamed that they were extremely cheap and twice as delicious as here in Australia. I was thinking that you could buy them straight from a farm or stall alongside the road as I had seen when I was last over there (then again I was 10 years old, and I don't remember a price since it was 10 years ago).

The stories I here from my dad (scottish born) about the berries he had when he was last over just recently.

Well that has certainly scattered my hopes..
 
Haggis, we certainly have LOTS of pick your own berry farms.... ditto apples and pears, in season. And they are beautifully flavoured fruits, particularly from Ayrshire and round the Aberdeen area.

However, the cost of food here is astronomical in comparison to Australia. My sister who has lived in Aus for 20 plus years nearly has a heart attack every time we go into my local supermarkets.. Particularly the price of meat! For instance, I buy fresh food most days, but do a big weekly shop at the supermarket, including things like kitchen towels, foil, cleaning products etc... and the weekly shop costs anything from 85 pounds to 115 pounds! And as I say, I shop most days, too..... A reasonably Aussie wine is about 7.99 a bottle (Wolf Blass, for instance) - although you can get some Penfold's for about 4 quid a bottle.... And if you think that the exchange rate is over 2 dollars (almost 3 a while back!) to the pound....

BTW - there are only 2 of us at home - I'm not buying for an army.. :LOL:
 
I haven't travelled to Scotland yet, I haven't seen any pick your own berry farms in our travels yet, but we haven't done much driving in high summer in the right areas as yet.

I used to find shopping really hard in England coz I put things into Aussie dollars all the time. I no longer use the supermarket and use local markets as I find it a bit more affordable, and especially traceable, I like to know where my food has come from.

Meat is just phenomenally dear compared to Oz. I eat more pork and poultry than ever before. I still haven't been able to buy lamb chops here, you could buy half a sheep for what they charge for a pound of lamb chops!!!! But I am getting better, I stop converting now.
 
Well that has dashed my hopes, was thinking of going and working/living/visiting relo's after Uni, but after hearing that...pass :). Hehe just kidding.

Headed over to the Growers/Produce markets this morning out at Flemington. Many a bargain to be had. Got three massive (I'm talking half a metre long stalks (not counting foliage) each, about 6-7 stalks in each) for AU$1 each.

12 punnets of strawberries (3kg of strawberries) for AU$10.

Tray of 16-20 fairly large mangoes, $5.

Box of cherries AU$10.

Vine-ripened truss roma/plum tomatoes AU$3 a kilo.

Kiwi Fruit, AU$2 a kilo.

Will most definitely be going out there again!!!
 
We had my niece staying with us (only as her base between tours round Europe and all over the UK mainland and Ireland) for over a year. She then tried to get a job (she has dual nationality) but found it difficult with her basic degree - so she went home for a year or so to top it up to a Masters, came back and found work and is now living and working on the South Coast of England. She loves it here - but when she's here, she misses 'home' and her family - when she's 'home' she misses the UK.... I think she's destined to be less than 100 per cent content, whichever side of the world she's living in.... :D

She's going home jsut after Christmas, and is seriously thinking that she needs to make the final decision about 'there' or 'here' as a permanent base...

You should come over and inflict yourself on your rellies! You'll probably only have the one chance to be fancy-free and able to travel where you like! Go for it! :D
 
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