We have two apple trees in our garden, alongside a pear tree. All there when we moved in. I mostly ignore them to be honest. Well I don’t ignore them, I just sort of forget about them until I wonder why there are so many wasps when we cut the grass and have to step over all the windfalls.
One of the great things about being part of the blogging community is that you get to learn an awful lot. Reading things that you might not have come across otherwise. This year I have seen more and more posts on foraging for food. People heading off to fields and hedgerows and coming home with a bounty of delicious foods.
When we went out with Toyota last week I spotted a blackberry bush bursting with fruit and had it been any other journey I would have insisted we stop. I love fresh blackberries, and the idea of picking from a hedgerow is wonderful. Real treasure. I came home from that trip thinking that I must do more with the fruit that we have in our own garden. That ignoring it any longer is just plain wasteful.
So this week I have vowed to pick as many apples as we can get through and do something constructive with them. I am thinking that a good jam chutney might be a good use for a lot of them, what do you think?
In the meantime I couldn’t resist making an apple crumble and roping Ellie in to do all the rubbing in.
This is by far the simplest recipe ever:
- 300g plain flour
- 175g brown sugar
- 200g butter
- 450g of apples (peeled, cored, cut into slices and then halved)
- 50g golden caster sugar
- 1tbsp plain flour
- 2tsp cinnamon
- Put the sugar and flour in a bowl and stir. Add the butter and rub together gently until it forms a breadcrumb like consistency.
- Butter a large dish
- Put fruit, sugar, flour and cinnamon into dish and gently mix with hands so apple is covered in dry ingredients
- Sprinkle the breadcrumb crumble over the fruit
- Cook in a pre heated oven at 180c / gas mark 4 for 45 mins until golden brown
There is something really satisfying about picking fruit and then making it into a dessert. An experience I never really fully grasped before now.
If you fancy trying out a different crumble recipe then how about this apple and blackberry crumble recipe from Flawless Foods?
Even simpler topping, I keep breadcrumbs in the freezer then when I want crumble I just sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top of the fruit, a couple of shakes of cinnamon and some dots of butter and into the oven! My family all think it tastes delish. I remembered my mum doing this years ago so decided to give it a try. Obviously back in the 50’s nothing was wasted!
Excellent as ever mrs barrow
Don’t forget to make apple sauce (dead easy – even I have made it) for the Christmas season!
Very little water, peeled, cored and sliced apples (debris to the compost heap) and a v. small
amount of sugar. Simmer v. carefully ’til you have a homogeneous slush. Cool divide into
reasonable portions and freeze.
Usual royalties, please.
Also blackberry and apple jam!