We all have days when we fancy something sweet after dinner, a little treat, something comforting but you think that you don’t have anything in to make, you can’t be bothered to pop to the shops for the ingredients, so you don’t bother and then end up craving something sweet and yummy all evening!!
We have all been there, but you will be surprised just what treasures the store cupboard hides and just how wonderful the things are we can produce from a few left overs, sometimes on the day before the shopping arrives we go through our cupboards, fruit bowls and fridges and either throw fruit in the bin or add it to the compost bin. Those packets of nuts or seeds that have hardly anything in, that you keep just incase, but never use and then end up throwing out when you have a Spring clean, well this recipe is just for that sort of thing.
The lovely Nigel Slater calls this the ‘Compost Crumble’ and I just love that, it is so apt and the great thing is, that every time that you make this, it will be different, as every time you will be using up different left overs.
Just look at my sad array of left overs, apples & pears that were going all withered in the fruit basket drawer, a handful of mixed berries foraged from the garden and some chopped mixed nuts, flaked almonds and pumpkin seeds that were left over from other recipes and not enough to do anything with !!!
However sad the fruit looks, I do have to admit, this has to be one of the best ever crumbles that I have ever made and over the years I have made a few, there is a different taste and texture in every bite and I know there is sugar and butter involved, but all that fruit is part of your five a day, it does feel rather wholesome and nutritious.
Also I normally make these sort of dishes on a Wednesday when Max (my Daughters Boyfriend) comes over for dinner and after he ate this he text me to say.. ‘That was well nice, definitely blog worthy!’ That made my day, I love making people happy by baking for them.
So I hope you enjoy this ‘Compost Crumble’, play around with flavours, add what ever fruit you fancy, maybe add a little alcohol, like Chambord if using raspberries, Calvados if using apples, different nuts and seeds and create something special.
Buon appetito
For the fruit:
Don’t bother to peel, just core and chop into chunks of roughly the same size so that the fruit cooks evenly, don’t cut your fruit to small or it will just cooked to a mush.
About 900g of your chosen fruit – apples, pears, nectarines,raspberries, blackberries,etc, any thing that you have lying around that may end up on the compost heap!
Juice of 1 lemon
100g sugar (I used unrefined golden, but use what you have in)
For the crumble:
200g plain flour
100g unsalted butter
100g demerara sugar (or what ever you have to hand)
a handful of jumbo oats, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame seeds, flaked almonds, again anything that you have to hand and needs using up from your store cupboard.
Heat oven to 180C/200C.
Place the pears, apples, nectarines (what ever fruit you have chosen) and lemon juice in a medium-size pan, add the granulated sugar and cook on a medium heat until the fruit starts to soften and releases its juices, about 10 mins.
Add any smaller berries that you have chosen, for example blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and bring back to the boil, then remove from the heat. Spoon the fruity mixture into 4 individual ovenproof ramekins, or 1 large baking dish. I often use our large Le Crueset shallow casserole dish as it is perfect to cook the fruit in, then add the topping straight on top, cook and serve all in one dish, minimal washing up !
Place the flour, butter and a pinch of salt in a large bowl and rub together with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs or alternatively use a food processor if you prefer. Add any chosen oats, seeds or nuts that you have chosen and demerara sugar, then stir to combine.
Sprinkle crumble evenly over the cooked fruit. This can be done up to 1 day ahead, or frozen for up to 1 month.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden and bubbling nicely. You will have to play around with the times depending on if you made one large one, little ones and your own individual oven as they do vary.
Perfect for freezing and if baking from frozen, add 15 mins extra cooking time.
Remove from the oven, cool slightly, then serve with homemade ice cream or custard.
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