Apple, pear, and blackberry crumble

Summertime is about crumbles and baked fruit desserts. I love the rich, sweet, and delicious flavours of fruit in peak season.

Crumble (the British term), also called a crisp (the US term), is a baked fruit dessert topped with a crumbly mix of grains, most commonly oats and nuts. The top layer adds a lovely nutty crispness, contrasting with the soft fruit baked underneath it.

This is a lovely crisp. The fruit is just cooked and retains its bite and flavour from the summer. The crumble on top adds texture and sweetness to the dessert. The dessert was fruit-forward, and I took the liberty of pairing it with Coconut lime ice cream.

Jikoni is a new cookbook on my shelf. I bought it primarily for the Kuku Paka recipe, but it is also loaded with amazing recipes from around the world. The recipes are admittedly exotic, which also translates to being quite intense. But when the recipes turn out as well as this one, the effort is well deserved. I love the book, its flair, photography, and recipes and will cook from it often.

For more recipes from the fabulous cookbook, click here.

Ingredients:

1 cup honey

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 pod of star anise

Zest and juice of 1 orange

3 pears, peeled, cored and cubed

3 apples of your choice, I used 2 Green and 1 Gala, peeled, cored and cubed

1 cup blackberries, blueberries or strawberries

For the topping:

1 cup rolled oats

3 tablespoons brown or Demerara sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

A pinch of salt

1/2 cup soft butter

1/4 cup flaked almonds

Heat the honey with the vanilla, star anise, orange zest, orange juice, pears, and apples on a low flame. Cook for about 5 minutes until the fruit just begins to get soft. Do not turn it to mush, but let it retain a bite. The sauce should be syrupy.

Pour into an oven-safe dish and allow to cool completely. Add the berries. If using strawberries, cut them into halves or quarters, depending on their size. Toss well to get an even fruit mix.

To make the topping, mix the rolled oats, sugar, cinnamon, and salt until you have small clumps. Add the almonds and mix in, not breaking up the almond flakes. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit. The crumble can be stored like this for up to 24 hours.

Heat the oven to 375° F.

If chilled, bring the crumble to room temperature. Bake for 15-18 minutes until the top is browned to a lively golden and the fruit is bubbling. Remove and sit for 3-5 minutes. Serve as is or with whipped cream or ice cream.