British Oaty Apple Crumble Is Richer Than a Traditional Recipe (2024)

Elaine Lemm

Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.

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Updated on 01/3/23

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Carrie Parente

Tested byCarrie Parente

Carrie is a freelance food stylist and culinary producer who loves having a table full of guests.

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British Oaty Apple Crumble Is Richer Than a Traditional Recipe (3)

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 30 mins

Total: 45 mins

Servings: 8 servings

80 ratings

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Add a little twist to the traditional apple crumble with this British specialty. A great fall dessert, this easy recipe is a more luxurious version, with a muesli made of oats, dried fruits, and nuts in the crumble mix, resulting in a fruity base and crunchy topping that is absolutely decadent. Top this crumble off with custard, whipped cream, or homemade ice cream for the ultimate treat.

British Bramley apples are used in this recipe as they are considered some of the best apples for cooking; the balance between the sugar and acid found in the Bramleys helps to keep their tangy flavor when cooked. However, there are many types of apples that can be used to make an apple crumble; just be sure to avoid the really hard varieties such as the Granny Smith.

"This recipe is easy, requires few ingredients, and your kids can even throw it together. It would be lovely for afternoon tea or a sweet addition to brunch. Mix it up with the addition of pears or berries. You can even change the flavor a bit by adding dried spices like cinnamon or nutmeg." —Carrie Parente

British Oaty Apple Crumble Is Richer Than a Traditional Recipe (4)

A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

For the Filling:

1 pound (450 grams) apples, preferably Bramley or other cooking apples
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2 tablespoons goldensuperfine sugar, or granulated sugar

For the Topping:

6 ounces (175 grams)all-purpose flour
4 ounces (115 grams)demerara sugar
4 ounces(115 grams) butter, cold, diced
1/2 cup (43 grams) oat-based muesli, or 1/4 cup (23 grams) rolled oats plus 1/4 cup (23 grams) mixed dried fruits and nuts

Steps to Make It

Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 375F/180 C/Gas Mark 5.
Prepare the filling by peeling, coring, and chopping the apples into bite-sized chunks. Don't cut the apples too small or they will disintegrate.
Grease a shallow 9 x 7-inch/23 x 18-centimeter (or 8 x 8-inch) baking dish. Put the apples in the dish, sprinkle the caster sugar over, and set aside.
To make the topping, put the flour, demerara sugar, and butter in a large bowl.
Rub the butter into the flour and sugar until you have a very coarse sand-like mixture. Don't worry too much about making it look uniform; this is a rustic dish and works well with an uneven texture.
Stir the muesli (or the oats plus fruits and nuts) into the crumble mixture.
Sprinkle the crumble topping over the apples. Bake the crumble until golden and the liquid is bubbling, 30 to 40 minutes.
Remove the crumble from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve with custard or a large dollop of good vanilla ice cream.

Tip

You can easily double or even triple the recipe to feed a crowd. Bake it in a larger pan and make sure the apples are tender and the topping is browned and crisp before taking it out of the oven.

What Is Caster Sugar?

Caster sugar is the name for fine sugar in the U.K. and comes in two varieties, white and golden. Golden caster sugar is unrefined and has a golden color.If you can't find it, use ordinary white caster sugar instead.

Crumble vs. Crisp vs. Cobbler

These three types of desserts are similar in the sense that they have a fruit base with some sort of pasty-like topping. A cobbler is crowned with a biscuit mixture, while crumbles and crisps have a streusel on top. The lines blur a bit when it comes to crumbles and crisps; technically, a crumble doesn't include oats, but over time both types of desserts have tended to feature this crunchy ingredient.

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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
292	Calories
12g	Fat
45g	Carbs
3g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories	292
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 12g	15%
Saturated Fat 7g	37%
Cholesterol 30mg	10%
Sodium 97mg	4%
Total Carbohydrate 45g	16%
Dietary Fiber 2g	8%
Total Sugars 24g
Protein 3g
Vitamin C 3mg	15%
Calcium 29mg	2%
Iron 1mg	7%
Potassium 126mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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British Oaty Apple Crumble Is Richer Than a Traditional Recipe (2024)

Tip

What Is Caster Sugar?

Crumble vs. Crisp vs. Cobbler

References