Apple crumble served with vanilla ice cream is one of my favourite desserts. I love the combination of apple and cinnamon, with the addition of a buttery crumble topping.
I’ve always made apple crumble by stewing the apples first. However, some recipes do not involve pre-cooking the apples. I also like to use brown sugar instead of regular sugar, because it provides a more caramel-like flavour. You can also add spices when cooking the apples, including cinnamon, vanilla bean, nutmeg or even star anise.
This apple crumble is gluten-freeish. I am reluctant to call it gluten-free because it contains oats. In Australia, oats cannot be labelled as “gluten-free” and are instead “wheat-free” or “gluten-friendly”.
Just a few things to note about this recipe. When cooking the apples, the water should reduce slightly and most of the liquid that remains should be drained. The cinnamon is optional, but highly recommended (I admittedly added too much cinnamon in this case and it made the apples a bit too brown). The crumble recipe is adapted slightly from Bojon Gourmet, and uses almond meal, brown rice flour and topica starch.
This apple crumble can be kept refrigerated for 3-4 days. When ready to eat, simply microwave the crumble until warm and serve with vanilla ice cream, custard or whipped cream.
I hope you enjoy the recipe, and let me know if you have any questions!
Apple Crumble
Apple filling:
- 6 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced into 1 cm cubes
- 60g brown sugar
- Juice of 1 lemon lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 50ml water
Topping:
- 50g almond meal
- 50g brown rice flour
- 10g tapioca starch
- 50g rolled oats
- 95g brown sugar
- 70g unsalted butter, melted
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Combine the apples, brown sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and water in a large saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes until the apples have softened, and liquid has reduced and thickened slightly. Set aside whilst you make the topping.
- To make the crumble topping, combine the almond meal, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, oats and brown sugar in a medium bowl. Add the melted butter, and mix until a crumbly mixture forms.
- Scoop the apple filling into your desired baking dish, draining most of the liquid but drizzling a couple tablespoons over the apples. Generously sprinkle the crumble topping over the apples. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown on top. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, custard or whipped cream.