Cosy Cornish Crumbles

Are you feeling hungry? Well, we love baking and devouring dessert so we’ve created three yummy crumbles with a Cornish twist to help satisfy your cravings. Let’s get ready to bake!

One of the best things about crumble is everything is easy to find and is a very adaptable bake. We would recommend you take a trip to your local greengrocer for delicious locally grown and in-season fruits. You may even choose to grow some of your own or even check out some local pick your own places. There’s nothing quite like baking something you’ve picked or grown yourself. A great tip here would be to harvest the fruits in season and freeze them (be sure to check how long they can be frozen for) or cook them down and then freeze. You can even freeze the crumble topping!

To make things simple here I’ve used the same crumble topping for each recipe which you can find below. Feel free to adapt it and add different sugars or even porridge oats for a crunchier topping.

Crumble Topping:

• 225g flour
• 100g Cornish butter, room temperature
• 45g granulated sugar
• Sprinkle of dark brown sugar

Crumble To-Do:

To make the crumble topping add the flour and butter chunks to a bowl and rub with your fingertips until it looks like chunky breadcrumbs. I like it chunky! Add the sugar and stir in with a spoon. I add the dark brown sugar at the very end before the crumble goes into the oven.

Apple and Blackberry

Best enjoyed in season: August (and till December if just using apples)

I know I shouldn’t have a favourite but I just love blackberries. Ember and I like heading out and picking blackberries on our walks and popping them in the fridge ready to eat. I think what is so fun about this recipe is you can go and pick the fruits yourself together. Just don’t forget to wash them first.

Ingredients:

• Brambly apples x3
• Handful of blackberries x2
• Teaspoon of sugar x3
• Teaspoon of water x3
• Teaspoon of honey x3

Recipe:

To make the crumble peel and core the three apples and layer in a dish. I like to do this in layers. Basically, a layer of apple sprinkled with a third of the blackberries and then a teaspoon each of water, sugar and honey. Then repeat and load on the crumble topping.

Bake the crumble for 45 minutes at 180 degrees till the crumble is golden and the fruit is a beautiful purple.

Kea Plum and Almond

Best enjoyed in season: June-September

If you are lucky enough to live near to Falmouth you may have heard of the Kea plum that grows in a valley just off of the estuary. They are a beautiful and sharp fruit that you can harvest locally and are brilliant for making jam. However, I just love crumble!

For the crumble topping use the above recipe but for an almond twist add in ground almonds and top with flaked almonds before going into the oven. Of course, this can also be adapted for any plum variety. Why not try Victoria?

Ingredients:

• Approximately 800g of ripe plums, de-stoned and cut in half
• Teaspoon of brown sugar x3
• Zest of an orange
• Teaspoon of cinnamon

Recipe:

For the crumble simply pop the plum halves into a dish of your choice. In a separate bowl mix together the sugar, spice and zest and sprinkle over the plums with about 3 tablespoons of water. Top this with the almond-crumble mix and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes at 180 degrees. In true Cornish style don’t forget to serve with clotted cream or fresh custard from Roddas.

Rhubarb and Walnut

Best enjoyed in season: April-July

For the perfect summery crumble it has to be rhubarb. I’ve added nuts to this recipe for an extra special crunch but of course you can leave this out if you prefer.

Ingredients:

• Approximately 500g of rhubarb, chopped into chunks
• 100g golden caster sugar

Recipe:

Due to the sharpness of the rhubarb this is best cooked a bit beforehand. Pop the chunks of rhubarb into a saucepan with the sugar and a couple of tablespoons of water (or port if you’re feeling fancy) and simmer, covered, on a low heat for about 10-15 minutes. You’re looking for the rhubarb to stay in its chunks but be soft and taste sweet. Then pour them into your baking dish.

If you’re using walnuts chop them up and add them into your crumble mix before popping this onto of your rhubarb. Bake for half an hour or a bit more at 180 degrees till nice and golden. Don’t forget the cream!

A Crumble Conclusion

There you have it folks! Three delicious and seasonal crumble recipes which feel quintessentially British and delightfully cosy. They are a great thing to prepare and make together as a family and, of course, devour together. We would love to hear from you and your bakes too. What is your family favourite?

Did you enjoy reading this blog? If so we’d recommend taking a look at our picnic recipe blog for some delicious Cornish-inspired picnic goodies.