plum crumble: the first of the season |
What a wonderful English pud this is!
I guess I’m subconsciously in the mood for comfort food as I
arrived in the old home country yesterday, land of treacle stodge, jam
roly poly and bread-and-butter pudding just to mention a few old favourites.
arrived in the old home country yesterday, land of treacle stodge, jam
roly poly and bread-and-butter pudding just to mention a few old favourites.
beautiful plums |
I am feeling very good about crumbles. This is the season par
excellence, after all. Apples and especially
those beautiful firm plums are at their
best and when made into crumbles, they are comforting in the extreme. They are
also very easy to knock up for a quick dessert that everybody loves. Even though you can serve a crumble with custard,
ice cream or regular cream, there’s something wicked about using buffalo cream
or kaymak!
That was my Turkish touch a few nights ago!
excellence, after all. Apples and especially
those beautiful firm plums are at their
best and when made into crumbles, they are comforting in the extreme. They are
also very easy to knock up for a quick dessert that everybody loves. Even though you can serve a crumble with custard,
ice cream or regular cream, there’s something wicked about using buffalo cream
or kaymak!
That was my Turkish touch a few nights ago!
a rulo of kaymak/buffalo cream |
So may I present this classic pudding for which you may very
well have your own recipe up your sleeve. You know how to make it, I’m quite sure, I’m
just gently reminding you:
well have your own recipe up your sleeve. You know how to make it, I’m quite sure, I’m
just gently reminding you:
Ingredients for Plum Crumble
Taken from Katie Stewart’s Cookbook
Serves 4
1 ½ lb/700g plums
1 tbsp water
1oz/25g butter
2-3oz/50-75g castor sugar – I used granulated
Crumble topping
6oz/175g plain flour
3-4oz/75-100g butter
2oz/50g castor sugar
Method
·
Preheat
the oven to 350°F/180°C/Gas no. 4.
Preheat
the oven to 350°F/180°C/Gas no. 4.
·
Halve
and stone the plums. Put them into a saucepan and add the water, butter and
sugar. Bring to the boil, cover with a pan lid, then cook gently for 5 minutes,
or until plums are tender.
Halve
and stone the plums. Put them into a saucepan and add the water, butter and
sugar. Bring to the boil, cover with a pan lid, then cook gently for 5 minutes,
or until plums are tender.
·
Spoon
the fruit mixture into a buttered 1 ½ pint/900ml baking dish. Choose one that
is shallow rather than deep so you get a good area of crumble.
Spoon
the fruit mixture into a buttered 1 ½ pint/900ml baking dish. Choose one that
is shallow rather than deep so you get a good area of crumble.
let cool a little before spooning over the topping unless it’s going straight in the oven |
·
Set
aside while preparing the topping.
Set
aside while preparing the topping.
·
Sift
the flour into a mixing bowl. Add the butter in pieces and rub in with your
fingertips, then add the sugar and continue to rub in until mixture forms large
crumbs that cling together – this is the secret to a crunchy texture.
Sift
the flour into a mixing bowl. Add the butter in pieces and rub in with your
fingertips, then add the sugar and continue to rub in until mixture forms large
crumbs that cling together – this is the secret to a crunchy texture.
rubbing in the butter |
adding the sugar |
here’s the crumble topping |
·
Spoon
crumble evenly over the fruit and press gently. (At this point it can wait in
the fridge quite happily till needed.) Then place above centre in the preheated
oven and bake for 40 minutes.
Spoon
crumble evenly over the fruit and press gently. (At this point it can wait in
the fridge quite happily till needed.) Then place above centre in the preheated
oven and bake for 40 minutes.
Serve warm with kaymak, cream, custard or
ice cream.
ice cream.
plum crumble with kaymak! |
Afiyet olsun!
BTW for
those of you who live in Turkey, are you all familiar with the Facebook page Cook’s Corner for Expats in Turkey? It’s lively and fun: you can ask all your questions and be sure you’ll
get an answer!
those of you who live in Turkey, are you all familiar with the Facebook page Cook’s Corner for Expats in Turkey? It’s lively and fun: you can ask all your questions and be sure you’ll
get an answer!
this looks so good! i have a bunch of apples i just bought yesterday and i will make this recipe using them. thanks so much!
This looks absolutely deliciously divine…..I could almost taste it. Going to the Farmer's Market in the city here later and will look for these Plums, here they call them Italian Prune Plums….the ones you have in your pics. I will make this recipe for tomorrow but one question is what exactly is 'castor' sugar? Never seen it on the supermarket shelves.
Thanks again for sharing one of your recipes and great photos.
This will also give me an excuse to get a pint of ice cream to put on top…yummmm.
Hi Erica, castor sugar is a finer form of granulated sugar and features a lot in English recipes. You can make it yourself by putting the regular granulated in the food processor and giving it a blast.
Thanks as always for your comments!
Thanks for the reply about the 'castor' sugar. Now I know I'll just like you said give it a blast in the food processor with the regular sugar…..
My neighbour told me that she thinks that they call it "fruit sugar" here.
I do a pear crumble so maybe I should try it with this castor sugar…thanks again. 🙂
Merhaba Claduia, lovely to see this crumble, just right for the season! Loved the look of those plums 🙂 I just posted milky mastic pud with rhubarb compote, we are all in the mood for comfort food!
Mm love the sound of your recipe – must have a look… wish we got rhubarb in Turkey. Apparently the climate is just not suitable.
Well I appreciate the reminder! I love crumbles and its always fun to see and experience peoples variations on the theme – this sounds delicious!
Mary x