Two things are certain at this time of year; the house is dark until 9.30am and after 2.30pm and my father will appear with two large bags of apples.
His own trees, one apple, one pear, from which I used to pick fruit myself as a child, produces a scant number of mothy looking specimens ever since an over enthusiastic pruning several years ago. My father is fond of proper apples and now always seeks someone else out with a good crop of their own and relieves them of a chunk of their glut.
How I long for those kilos and kilos of rock hard pears! The chutneys and preserves I might make. My cellar is crammed with patiently waiting bottles and jars!
Apples are what I have though, not enough to supply a cottage industry but enough to make a few puddings and possibly some apple chutney and sauces for the freezer. Some will be wrapped in paper and stored in boxes in the cellar to last over the next month or two but I could not wait to make a comforting pudding to cheer us up now the weather is getting colder.
My father also goes blackberrying – but not by the roadside, which sadly nowadays is a place where fruit will be contaminated with fumes and pickers mown down by traffic, he informs me the best place to gather blackberries in the old fashioned way is next to the canal.
I should declare however that the beauties below came from not the leaf sodden banks of the grand union canal, but *ahem* from Waitrose where whilst in season, they are a more economical buy than Ted’s usual favourite of raspberries or strawberries.
As for coping with decreased light, these pictures were taken on top of my kitchen sink right by the window. My opportunities for taking pictures in daylight are few and far between with the little person doing his best to “help”.
Thankfully the days of him assisting in a useful fashion by fetching things and holding foil reflectors in position is in sight!
So, tell me your childhood memories of picking fruit?
Mini Apple and Blackberry Cinnamon Crumbles
Fills 4-6 ramekins, depending on sizeIngredients
For the crumble topping
50g wholemeal flour*
40g plain flour*
30g wheatgerm*
50g unsalted butter cut into cubes
30g soft brown sugar plus extra for sprinkling on top
1/2 tsp ground cinnamonFor the fruit filling
25g butter
2 average size cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped into medium size chunks
75g blackberries
4 tbsp soft brown sugarYou will also need 4-6 ramekins although you can serve one big crumble if you wish.
*Or use 120g gluten free plain flour instead of plain/wholemeal wheat flour mix.
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 180c or gas mark 4.
2. Rub the flours, wheatgerm and unsalted butter together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs – you can pulse it in the food processor to do this if you prefer. Stir in the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside while you make the fruit filling.
3. Melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan and when it is fully melted add the apple chunks. Leave the lid on to keep condensation in, turn the heat to moderately low and allow the apple to cook down for 5 minutes, then add the sugar and blackberries and leave for a further 5 minutes. By now the fruit should be soft and cooked but do not leave so long it turns to mush.
4. Spoon the fruit mixture into the ramekins so they are two thirds full. Cover each ramekin with the crumble mix and sprinkle the tops with soft brown sugar.
5. Bake in the middle of the oven for 15-20 minutes and serve with cream, custard or ice cream as desired.
Lovely! Lovely! Lovely! I love crumbles! Send some good apples over here! 😉
Can you catch if I throw one?
What a good idea to make mini ones. Less opportunity for greed and second and third helpings. And there can always be an emergency crumble in the freezer!
I like the idea of an “emergency crumble” very much indeed!!
What gorgeous little crumbles! My kind of dessert.
Cheers,
Rosa
Thank you!
oh temme about the lighting…im struggling quite a bit mainly because i cook in the evening and with no light left, i now have no choice but to pass:0
the crumble looks warm..prefect for this horrid weather.
Fear not! It is surprising how much light can be bounced of a piece of tin foil wrapper around a cornflake packet!
Oh Sarah, this looks divine. Crumble is my favourite dessert!
Thank you – a wonderful compliment after that awesome trick you did with those lemons the other day!
We used to get tonnes of plums off the tree at my nana and poppa’s and then nana would stew them for breakfast ^_^ This crumble looks just lovely too.
sooo yummy! i wish i can have one right now! i love anything with the word crumbles on it..my knees go weak..:)
Ooh this is what Autumn is all about I think! I love making crumble in little ramekins as well as I think it makes it feel more special!
I remember picking blackberries as a child from a huge maze of bushes which ran alongside a golf course near my mum’s house in Harrow. The juiciest ones were always just out of easy reach and I would keep getting poked by the thorns trying to get to them. It was so worth it – ahhh happy days! A couple of years ago I had a flashback about picking wild blackberries and got very excited about what I could make with them but was sadly told all the bushes had been mown down.
What a lovely nostalgic post and a delicious recipe. I’m inspired to make one for tonight’s dinner – perfect for this frosty Friday.
What lovely crumbles these are! I remember going huckleberry picking with my grandparents in Northern British Columbia. We’d go way out into the woods, always being careful to watch for bears. 🙂
I love crumble. I only had it for the first time when I came over for my A Levels, and absolutely loved it. Thanks for the reminder, I haven’t made crumble yet this autumn/winter.
you take the most beautiful pictures, will you do a photography post sometime?