golden raspberry and apple crumble

… as regular readers of this blog will know, I am lucky enough to live in a charming village with neighbours who have become good friends.  We rely on each other for support when a cup of tea and a shoulder is needed, when a dog is stuck in and needs a walk, when bicycle tyre is flat and only an electrical pump will do or even when a harvest of golden raspberries needs turning into a crumble… it seems that i’ve most definitely become that guy that people turn to when they need something baking… got a glut of apples, give them to Dom… it’s been known for us to come home and there be a bag filled with produce hanging on the door-handle.  No note, no-one to explain from whence it came.  of course i’m not complaining, bring it on I say, so it was very sweet when my neighbours grandchild Lydia turned up the other day with a bright pink sandcastle bucket filled with golden raspberries with the strict instructions to ‘make a crumble’…

golden raspberry and apple crumble
I think that the good people at Linwoods sent me a selection of their flaxseed mixes way back at the beginning of the year and it took me ages to think how I would use any of them in my food… i’m just not the ‘sprinkle it in’ kind of guy… but over the course of the last few months i’ve been using the flaxseed, cocoa and berries mix more and more in things i’ve been baking.  There’s something wonderful about the combination of sweet cocoa, sour berries and flax that works so very well in a lot of dishes, particularly fabulous mixed into a crumble topping…

for the crumble
225g plain or wholewheat flour
75g butter – I used salted but unsalted would be best
100g soft brown sugar
100g Linwoods flaxseed, cocoa and berries mix – or any other grains, nuts, seeds and cocoa powder

for the filling
a bucket full of golden raspberries
3 medium tart apples – cut into chunks
3 or 4 tablespoons of soft brown sugar

pre-heat the oven to 170C

i’m a firm believer in not cooking the fruit first, particularly when it comes to berries such as raspberries as they simply turn to mush, plus I like my fruit with a little bite in it

I foolishly didn’t weigh the raspberries but there was enough to fill the bottom of my ceramic dish.  Don’t wash them either.  Make sure they’re clean and dust off any little critters or mud – the whole dish is going to be blasted in an oven for 30 minutes so there’s unlikely to be much left in the way of bug-life

lay the cut apple pieces randomly on top and then sprinkle the whole lot with sugar.  I use only a little sugar as I like it nice and tart as I like the cream that i’m going to pour all over it do the work… set aside

put the flour and butter into a large bowl and rub together with your fingertips until you have a crumbly texture, add the rest of the ingredients and mix together

sprinkle the crumble on top of the fruit and press down firmly, then gently run a fork across the top

bake for 30 mins until golden and serve

… as you can see from the pictures, i’ve left my crumble unadorned ready for the topping of your choice… so how do you eat yours?  Purists would say piping hot, dripping in custard but I love mine ice-cold from the fridge, drenched in cream… heavenly!

eat and of course, enjoy!