We’ve had assorted small-ish illnesses in the house over the last month, so my bakealong has gone out the window for this year I think.

The weather has changed, and it’s very much Winter now, with the light starting to flitter away mid-afternoon. Thankfully it’s also prime apple season, and I was gifted a bag of apples from someone’s tree. Crumble time!

I’m a big fan of doing crumble in the food processor. Fast, less mess and really quick.

220g plain flour, 115g butter (I used salted, so didn’t add an additional pinch), 90g of caster sugar get whizzed up together. I then add a tablespoon or two of water, and pulse. This helps with the too-smooth texture and gives nice nubby bits to get super crunchy.

Into the freezer for half an hour or so while getting on with the apples – one of the tricks to crumbly crumble (rather than the slightly doughy kind) is keeping the butter solid for just a few minutes in the oven, instead of immediately melting.

About a kilo of apples, cooked down with 2 tbsp water (could use apple juice, or calvados!). I like when there are some quite large chunks still, but part is gooey. I like to add a little nutmeg and cinnamon at the end. The amount of sugar I add varies from a tablespoon to about 4 – depends entirely on the tartness of the apples. I don’t like to make them totally sweet. For me, a bite is definitely needed, especially when combined with the sugar in the crumble and whatever accompanies the final dish.

Apples into a dish, frozen crumble on top, and into the oven.

Half an hour later, a dish of delicious lava.

Hot, sugary fruit absolutely needs cooling time before an attempt is made at tasting!

Well worth the wait, especially doused in vanilla custard. Yum!