serves 6
Goooood morning – as I sit here frustratedly posting by hot-spotting off my phone as my bloody wifi keeps cutting out – grrrrrrr – madness! However, I won’t let that deter me from sharing this delicious little humble crumble, prettily pink-stained from tart rhubarb and sweet strawberries with the addition of apple for structure, it is topped with a short-cakey crumble which is so good I could eat it on it’s own. Basically just add vanilla bean ice cream and you have a perfect ‘spring’ dessert for when it is actually dumping snow down south and not that flash in the north either…
So, it’s been a busy old time lately, what with Pog staying for a few weeks while co-ordinating his move to Welly. I will definitely miss our evenings of vego dinners followed by gratuitous movie watching intellectual classics such as Sex in the City, It’s Complicated and Crazy Rich Asians. He drove off with the darling Kelsea in Hilda the VW van last Saturday morning and arrived safely to unload his new purchases into his flat on Saturday afternoon. No surprises that hours later his room was already magazine-worthy complete with cane side cabinet, futon bed, leather chair, twin mirrors and pot plants…that man/boy has one helluva an eye!!! (Queer Eye NZ if you’re looking for a cast I have your first expert ready and waiting!). Meanwhile darling Hoob helped him to move in, and it has made me so incredibly happy to think that they are now just down the road from each other – there is nothing like knowing your blood rellie is close at hand. Hoob has been hard at work as usual (both at work and uni), and I can’t wait to head down in just a few weeks to take him out for dinner for his 21st birthday. I can’t believe both of my babies are so grown, and such mature, intelligent men – both forces of nature in their own right! Anyhooo, enough proud mamma rambling, it’s not raining yet, I have a busy day ahead, time to get my walking shoes on…
300grams rhubarb, washed
2/3 cup cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 granny smith apples
300grams strawberries
120 grams butter, softened
1 cup plain flour
3/4 cup sliced almonds
vanilla bean ice cream or softly whipped cream to serve
Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Trim the rhubarb into 4-5cm pieces, peel and chop the apples into 3cm pieces and halve the strawberries. Put the rhubarb in a large frying pan with 1/3 cup of the caster sugar, the vanilla extract and 1/3 cup of water. Cook over a medium heat for 4 minutes, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the apple pieces and cook a further 6-7 minutes until they are starting to soften. Add the strawberries and cook a further 3 minutes. Put the fruit mixture into a 23cm round baking dish. Put the remaining sugar and the butter into a food processor and whiz together until pale. Add the flour and whiz until it starts forming big clumps, then add the sliced almonds and pulse to combine. Crumble the mixture on top of the fruit, squishing into clumps with your fingers as you go. It can now be chilled in the fridge for up to 5 hours or baked immediately. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the crumble topping is golden. Rest for 5 minutes before serving with vanilla bean ice cream and/or softly whipped cream.
Thank you Sarah,
Your crumble looks and sounds delicious. Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks so much Wendy – I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Hello Sarah,
This sounds delish! Just querying the beginning of the recipe – is it just the sugar, vanilla and water that cooks to start with – then the apples are added?
On the list for the weekend 🙂
Hahah – whoops, thanks so much – it’s the rhubarb – I’ll amend it straight away! 🙂
yum. comfort food with a capital c.
just wondering about the plate? Very cool. have got similar ones in white but would love to know where to get some black ones?
thanks
Maria
Thanks so much Maria – it’s actually a grey metal plate from Flotsam and Jetsam in Ponsonby, but I bought it aaaages ago!