A deeply autumnal apple and cobnut crumble. Now, where’s the custard…
Serves 6-8
Ingredients for the filling:
- 1kg Bramley apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 500g plums, stoned
- 150g golden caster sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 50ml apple juice
- 50ml brandy
Ingredients for the crumble topping:
- 200g cobnuts, shelled and roughly chopped
- 200g butter, cubed
- 200g golden caster
- 200g ground hazelnuts
- 200g plain flour
- ½ tsp salt
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
In a large heavy bottomed sauce pan slowly cook half of the Bramleys and two-thirds of the plums, with the sugar, spices, juice and brandy, until they turn to pulp. Add the remaining fruit and cook for another five to ten minutes. Leave to cool.
In a large bowl mix together all the ingredients for the crumble topping, using your fingers or a palette knife to rub the butter into the flour, until the mixture resembles coarse rubble. Spread the crumbs on to a shallow baking tray and cook in the oven, stirring well every five until they are an even light golden brown, then set aside to cool.
Turn the oven up to 200 degrees. Fill a medium sized dish that’s at least three to four inches deep and generously butter the bottom and sides. Spoon in the cool apple and plum filling and scatter over the cobnut crumble. Be generous, but don’t worry if you have too much of either, as both keep well (or freeze) and will make a delicious topping for breakfast yoghurt. Bake the crumble for 20 minutes or until golden on top and the fruit is bubbling. Serve with double cream, custard or creme fraiche.