There is nothing more comforting than a sweet and tart apple and raspberry crumble on a cold winters night. Serve with a dollop of cream or ice cream.
I have recently become a fan of Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. Whilst I’ve had a subscription to the Lifestyle Food channel for a few years, I’ll admit I’d never really paid much attention to her show (I think that’s because the list of cooking shows I already watch is rather long), but now having seen it I know I’ve been missing out. I love her easy manner, relaxed style of cooking all the while maintaining an attention to detail.
After watching one of her shows recently I was inspired to use he crumble recipe from her Keep it Sweet episode. Whilst peaches aren’t in season here I was inspired enough to make the recipe using what fruit I had to hand, which was frozen raspberries and apples. This recipe for apple and raspberry crumble is quick and easy to prepare, which is ideal at the moment given I’m still on crutches.
I made 4 crumbles using the recipe, and T and I had one each for dessert one night and planned to have the other after dinner the next night. T loved the crumble SO much that he found it difficult to resist the urge to go to the kitchen and get a second crumble. If that isn’t a resounding endorsement I don’t know what is. Needless to say, the crumble recipe will become a staple. I also loved how deliciously crumbly and crunchy the topping was. I often find crumble recipes don’t produce a very crumbly topping. Also, this recipe was even better due to the fact the crumble topping was still crumbly and crunchy the next day.
In addition to being inspired by the crumble recipe, I also noticed that Ina used her Kitchenaid to make the crumble topping. When I’ve made crumble, in the past I’ve always made it by hand, but using the Kitchenaid mixer to make the crumble was just SO easy. I highly recommend it.
Anyway, back to the Barefoot Contessa. If you’re a fan, I’d be interested to hear what your favourite recipes are? If you’re not a fan have you discovered a celebrity chef recently whose cooking you adore?
Apple and raspberry crumbles
Ingredients
Fruit Base:
- 4 apples peeled and cut into cubes
- 1 cup of frozen raspberries
- 1 teaspoon of lemon zest
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 2 tablespoons of plain flour
- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
Crumble topping:
- 1 cup of plain flour
- 1/3 cup of sugar
- 1/4 cup of brown sugar
- a pinch of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 115 grams of butter cut into cubes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsuis (350 degrees farenheit).
- In a bowl add the cubed apple and raspberries and add the sugar, flour, lemon zest and lemon juice and mix together until the fruit is coated. Pour the fruit into individual ramekins.
- In a mixer bowl add the flour, sugars, salt, cinnamon and butter and mix until the butter is mixed in and the batter starts to form pea sized clumps.
- Sprinkle the crumble topping over the fruit, making sure to not pat the mixture tightly. The looser the mixture the crumblier your crumble will be.
- Bake in the oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until the crumble topping is golden and the juices start to bubble through the crumble topping.
- Serve with vanilla bean ice cream or freshly whipped cream, or if you are feeling indulgent, both!
