A British dessert classic – and for good reason! This Easy Apple and Blackberry Crumble features deliciously tangy Bramley apples, juicy blackberries and a perfectly light and crisp crumble topping. (Can be made with fresh or frozen blackberries.)
An early autumn classic!
One of our favourite things to do in late August / early September is go blackberry picking! We are incredibly lucky as our house is on the edge of the village and backs onto fields that are simply bursting with blackberries. (I always joke that we have enough blackberries in our back field to keep a jam factory in business for a long time!)
One of our favourite things to make with our annual blackberry haul is a classic Apple and Blackberry Crumble! Tangy Bramley apples go so beautifully with fat, juicy blackberries, all topped off with a perfectly light and crisp crumble and lashings of custard (or cream, or ice cream!) This Easy Apple and Blackberry Crumble is one of those perfect puddings that always hits the spot, never goes wrong and is a real crowdpleaser 😀
Fresh or frozen blackberries?
But don’t fret if it’s the wrong time of year or you don’t happen to have a handy blackberry-rich field just behind your house, this Easy Apple and Blackberry Crumble can be made with fresh or frozen blackberries. Out of season, check your local supermarket’s frozen aisle and it’s more than likely they’ll have frozen blackberries, which work just as well as fresh ones in this recipe! Just defrost the frozen blackberries before continuing with the recipe as written.
Super simple to make…
This delicious Apple and Blackberry Crumble is super quick and easy to make (only 15 minutes hands on time!) All you need to do is quickly rub together the flour and butter, then stir in the sugar. Next, place the chopped apples and blackberries in your pie dish and top with the crumble mix. Finally, place the crumble in a pre-heated oven for 30-40 minutes – until it is crisp and golden on top. Easy peasy!
Should you use plain flour or self-raising flour in a crumble?
Plain flour is the best flour to use in a crumble. It gives a much lighter, crisper, crumblier texture, whereas self-raising flour will give you a denser, more stodgy, ‘cakey’ texture.
However, if you only have self-raising flour to hand, it’s certainly not a disaster, and will still make a decent pud.
Do you have to use Bramley apples?
Technically speaking, you could make this with any kind of apples, but if you possibly can, I strongly recommend you use Bramley apples – they have much more flavour when cooked and really work well as a contrast to the juicy blackberries.
Can you use other berries?
If you can’t get hold of blackberries, you can sub with any other berries you like: raspberries, blueberries, blackcurrants and loganberries all work well. Or why not use a mix of berries (fresh or frozen), such as in my Easy Summer Fruits Crumble?
Make it your own…
This Easy Apple and BlackBerry Crumble is very easy to adapt, you could:
- Use wholemeal flour in place or some (or all) of the plain white flour
- Use half ground almonds, half plain flour in the topping
- Use oats in place of some (or all) of the flour
- Use the crumble topping in this recipe to make this pudding gluten free and dairy free
- Stir a handful of chopped nuts into the crumble for added crunch
- Use pears instead of apples in the filling
- Add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the filling
What to serve with Apple and Blackberry Crumble crumble?
This delicious crumble works well with custard, cream (pouring or whipped), ice cream or yogurt.
What to drink with Apple and Blackberry Crumble?
If you love dessert wines, then I recommend a Sauternes or any other similar wine from the same region. Other late harvest sauvignons or semillons from elsewhere in the world would work well too. Alternatively, a sweet Riesling, Gewürztraminer or Tokaji would also be good options.
If you are not a fan of dessert wines then this traditional pud also goes great with an after dinner coffee or cup of tea!
What to do with leftover crumble?
Leftover crumble is delicious cold the next day! Simply put any leftovers in a lidded container and place in the fridge, where it will keep for up to 4 days.
Alternatively, you can reheat leftover crumble. Place leftovers into an ovenproof dish and place in an oven pre-heated to 180C (160C fan / gas mark 4 / 350F) for 10-15 minutes, or until piping hot all the way through.
Can you freeze crumble?
Absolutely! Put the cooked and cooled crumble in a lidded container and place in the freezer, where it will keep for up to 3 months.
Defrost overnight in the fridge and either eat cold or reheat as above.
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
Easy Apple and Blackberry Crumble
Ingredients
- 200 g plain white flour AKA all-purpose flour
- 100 g cold butter cut into 1cm / ½inch cubes (see Note 1)
- 100 g soft light brown sugar (see Note 2)
- 750 g Bramley apples (AKA cooking apples) peeled, cores removed and chopped into small pieces (see Note 3)
- 250 g fresh blackberries (or frozen blackberries – defrost first before continuing with the recipe)
- 1 tablespoon soft light brown sugar or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200C / 180C fan / gas mark 6 / 400F.
- Place the flour and cubed butter in a large bowl and rub together until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs (or do this in a food processor if you prefer – see Note 4).
- Add the 100 g soft light brown sugar and stir. (There is no need to sieve the flour or sugar, as a bit of a rough texture is what is needed for a good crumble!)
- Set the crumble topping mixture to one side while you prepare the filling.
- Peel the apples, remove the cores and then chop into bite-sized pieces – roughly 1cm / ½inch cubes.
- Place the apple pieces and blackberries into the dish you are planning to cook the crumble in. Stir 1-2 tablespoons of light brown sugar into the fruit (or however much sugar gives you a good balance of tart/sweet for your tastes). Mix together so the apples, blackberries and sugar are well combined, then spread out into a flat layer in the dish.
- Sprinkle over the crumble topping – this can be quite rough and ready, but make sure all the fruit is covered. If it looks a bit too neat on top, rough it up a bit. You want lots of peaks and troughs to give it that really good crumble texture.
- Put your crumble in your preheated oven for 30-40 minutes or until it is golden on top, and the fruit is bubbling. Serve with custard, cream, ice cream or yogurt.
Notes
- You can use margarine if you prefer, but personally I find the flavour and texture far better with butter.
- You can use white sugar if you prefer, but I find the flavour and texture far better with light soft brown sugar. For a more caramelized / smoky taste, you could use dark soft brown sugar or muscovado sugar!
- Make sure you use Bramley apples / cooking apples. 'Eating' apples tend not to have enough flavour when cooked, resulting in a dull and lacklustre crumble.
- You can use a food processor to rub the butter and flour together, if you prefer. However, you will get a far better result if you do this by hand!
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
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Wendy Holmes-Link says
Made this crumble yesterday its wonderful .Thank you I have lots of blackberries in freezer for more in the future.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, that’s so great to hear! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review… and especially for the 5* rating! 😀
Mary says
This looks so good and I can’t wait to make it. Is the weight for the Bramley apples before or after peeling and coring? Thanks
Eb Gargano says
Saw this on Instagram first, so I know you know already… but will answer here as well in case it helps others. The weight is for the apples BEFORE peeling and coring. Thank you so much for the lovely photo you shared on Instagram – I am so pleased you liked it so much! 😀