I love warm cooked apples. And it is no surprise that this deliciously warm and toasty apple crumble recipe is one of my favorites, especially when the weather turns to autumn. Apple crumble is one of those classic no-fuss desserts that everyone should have in their recipe book. The good news is that this delicious recipe is very easy to make and takes around half an hour to prepare.
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If you have never tried an apple crumble before, or looking for a traditional apple crumble recipe, you are in the right place! With warm and sweet apple filling and crunchy topping, this recipe will be your new go-to dessert recipe. Not to mention the amazing smell of a combination of sugar, cinnamon, and butter in your kitchen when the apple crumble is in the oven!
Why This Recipe Works?
- It's a very simple recipe to follow with step-by-step pictures and instructions.
- It's ready in less than an hour.
- You can prep it a couple of days in advance and cook it when needed.
- All you need is a few ingredients you might already have in hand.
Ingredients and Substitutes
- Apples - Cooking apples such as granny smith, bramley, honey crisp, or other semi-sour apples work great with apple crumble.
- Brown Sugar - You can substitute it with muscavado, Demerara or caster sugar. Adjust the amount of sugar to your taste and the apples you use.
- Cinnamon - I love adding cinnamon to apples to intensify the flavour. You can omit it or use vanilla instead.
- Walnuts - Baking with nuts is a great way to add flavor and texture to your crumble. Use pecan nuts if you prefer. Lightly toast them for a more intense flavour before adding them to your baked goods.
- Lemon Juice - It prevents oxidation of the apples as well as adding some acidity to the apple filling.
- All Purpose Flour - Also known as plain flour. It is perfect for making cakes, cookies, pastries and thickening sauces.
- Unsalted Butter - Cut them into small cubes and make sure they are cold before adding to the flour.
How to Make Apple Crumble?
Making an apple crumble is surprisingly easy. And there are only a few simple tips and steps that you need to follow to achieve the best results:
- Cook the apples - Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and prepare the apples. Peel and core the apples using an Apple Corer. Cut them in halves, then thinly slice or cut them into 3 cm-sized cubes. Place the apples, sugar, and lemon juice into a medium-saucepan and cook it on medium heat until the apples are slightly softened and the juice from the apples is reduced down to syrup consistency. Adding half lemon juice into the apple mixture will balance the sweetness of the apple filling and give the apple crumble a nice dimension. Let the mixture cool down for 10 minutes. Add the cinnamon and crushed walnuts into the apple filling.
- Prepare the crumble - Cut the butter into small cubes and place in a mixing bowl with the flour. Rub them together with your fingertips until it looks like bread crumbs. It is very important to use the butter when it is still cold. This will make sure that your crumble has that nice crunchy texture. Add the sugar (and vanilla if you wish) to the crumb and lightly rub the mixture with your fingertips until combined, without overworking it. Adding half of a vanilla bean to the crumble mixture is not a must but I like adding it because it gives the crumble a very nice smell.
- Cook the apple crumble - Transfer the apple filling into a baking dish 20cm x 30 cm (13" x 9"). Sprinkle the crumble over the apple filling and gently press using a Silicone Spatula . Bake in the preaheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until it looks golden brown. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Related Recipes
For other great dessert recipes why not try:
Apple crumble is a baked fruit dessert with a layer of topping. But unlike the crisp, the crumble topping does not include oats or nuts. Instead, a crumble topping is more like streusel, made with flour, sugar, and butter.
I recommend not to freeze apple crumble as the apples get soggy while thawing and the crumble lose its crunchy texture.
It is often difficult to choose the right one among hundreds of varieties. For this recipe, I would recommend you to use a slightly sour type of apples such as gala, Bramley, granny smith, or honey crisp apples.
Top Tip From The Chef
I recommend eating the apple crumble when it is freshly out of the oven. But it would last for 3-4 days in the fridge but the crunchiness of the crumb would not be as fresh as straight out of the oven. You can serve the warm apple crumble with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or/and custard.
I hope you enjoy the process of making this amazing Apple Crumble as much as you enjoy eating it 😊!
Bon appétit! / Afiyet Olsun!
Best Apple Crumble Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Peeler
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 1.5 kgs apple (granny smith, bramley, honey crisp, or other semi-sour apples)
- 80 g brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 100 g walnut (crushed)
- ½ lemon juice
Crumble
- 120 g all purpose flour
- 60 g unsalted butter (cold)
- 50 g granulated (caster) sugar
- ½ vanilla stick (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6.
- Peel and core the apples.
- Quarter the apples and cut them into 3cm sized cubes.
- Place the apples, sugar and lemon juice into a medium-sized saucepan and cook it on medium heat until the apples are slightly softened and the juice from the apples is reduced down to syrup consistency. Let the mixture cool down for 10 minutes.
- Add the cinnamon and crushed walnuts into the apple filling.
- Cut the butter into small cubes and place in a mixing bowl with the flour and rub them together with your fingertips until it looks like bread crumbs.
- Add the sugar (and vanilla if you wish) to the crumb and lightly rub the mixture with your fingertips until combined, without overworking it.
- Transfer the apple filling into a 20cm x 30cm baking dish.
- Sprinkle the crumble over the apple filling and gently press.
- Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until it looks golden brown. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
- You can serve it with either vanilla ice cream or custard (or both!).
Nutrition
Food safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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Did you make this recipe?
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Ayla
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