Phil Vickery's humble crumble masterclass
Phil’s in the kitchen to celebrate one of the greatest puddings of all time - the humble crumble!
With a delicious array of fruity fillings and crumble combinations, he’s got something for everyone.
Apple crumble
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 Bramley apples, large peeled cored and cut into medium sized chunks
200g caster sugar
Juice 1 large lemon and finely grated zest
Dash of water
For the topping
200g salted butter, cold
400g plain flour
200g caster sugar, roughly
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 190°C, Gas 5
2. Place the apples, sugar, lemon and a dash of water into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook until the apples are half cooked, then remove from the stove. Spoon carefully into a 25cm x 5cm (roughly) deep baking dish.
3. Place the cold butter and flour together in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is at fine breadcrumbs, then tip into a bowl. Using a spoon, mix in the sugar. This way around ensures that the mixture does not cake up, but keeps the crumble nice and loose.
4. Spread evenly over the apples taking care not to pack down, leave nice and domed
5. Bake in the pre heated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until nice and golden. Remove and cool before eating.
Tip - I serve mine with custard, double cream, clotted cream or vanilla ice cream.
Pear crumble
Serves 4
Ingredients
6 very ripe pears
4 tbsp olive oil
1 large lemon, the zest and juice of
175 g sugar
2 pinch cinnamon powder (optional)
For the topping
135 g cold unsalted butter
225 g plain flour
125 g light brown sugar
100 g ground almonds
Method
1. Pre heat the oven to 200c, Gas Mark 6.
2. Peel and core the pear, then cut into large chunks.
3. Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the lemon zest and juice, 175g sugar, cinnamon and the pears. Cook for 5 minutes to soften slightly depending on how ripe they are.
4. Carefully pour the pears into a colander over a bowl to drain away some of the liquid, then transfer into a large baking dish. Add a little of the liquid back in if it's too dry.
5. Place the cold butter and flour into a food processor and blitz until you have fine breadcrumbs. Tip into a bowl and stir through the sugar, and ground almonds carefully. Spoon over the top of the stewed pears.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until well browned.
7. Serve the crumble with the custard.
Plum crumble
Serves 4
Ingredients
25g (1oz) unsalted butter
1 vanilla pod, split, and its seeds
1tsp ground allspice
115g (4oz) soft light brown sugar
550g (1lb 4oz) slightly under-ripe plums, stoned and cut into quarters
Grated zest 1 lemon
Grated zest 1 lime
For the topping
225g (8oz) plain flour
115g (4oz) Crunchy Cereal with Raisins and Almonds, or a similar cereal
115g (4oz) soft light brown sugar
175g (6oz) unsalted butter, chilled, and cut into small cubes
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200 C, 180 C (fan oven), 400 F, gas 6. In a pan, melt the butter, add the vanilla pod and its seeds and warm through for a few minutes – the aroma is fantastic.
2. Add the all spice and sugar and stir well. The butter will separate but don’t worry, this is normal. Cook for a few minutes, stirring all the time.
3. Add the plums and the lemon and lime zests to the pan and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. As the plums start to break down, the juices and the sugar mix together and the sauce takes on a lovely, silky-smooth toffee-like consistency. When the plums are soft, tip the mixture into an ovenproof dish and leave to cool.
4. To make the crumble, put the flour, cereal and sugar into a food processor and blend. Add the butter, switch to the pulse button and blend again until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
5. Spoon the crumble topping over the cooled plums. Bake for about 20 minutes or until evenly browned, then serve warm with clotted cream and/or vanilla ice cream.