A CRUMBLE TO FALL FOR…a healthy Apple Crumble!

Sugar & spice & ‘FALL’ things nice…that’s what I’m made up of!

Cinnamon scrolls…adding flavour to the Crumble!

A twist to the regular crumble to make it healthier. I have substituted the butter for margarine, and lightly toasted (or roasted) the oats to bring out the crunch and flavour. Apples, cinnamon & walnuts bring out quite the best in each other…as far as taste, colour and warmth go. The only thing missing are the twirling leaves when the south wind blows!! Guess we can sit amidst them & savour the crumble.

This is my entry for 3 blog events this Fall…

1. Blog or Bust #3! where ‘The Clumsy Cook’ asks a healthy “Fall” dish…’something comfortable, something cozy, something hearty’.
2. HotM 8 where Joanna at ‘The Heart of the Matter’ is looking for ‘heart-healthy baking recipes’….that means ‘NO butter and not much marge. Not many egg yolks. No cream. No cheese to speak of. Not a lot of oil, even if it is olive oil. ‘
3. Sweetnicks does an ‘ARF/5-A-Day Tuesday’ night round-up every week of recipes with an antioxident rich food, fruit/veggie etc…and it’s gotta be healthy. Red apples & pecans are on the list of the top 20 ARFs. Do check out her site for the others on the list.

Ingredients:

Apples – 6-8/ 1Kg (crisp tart ones are nice)
Juice of 1 lemon (increase it if the apples are too sweet)
Sugar (granular) – 2 Tbsps
Raisins – 1 handful
Cinnamon – 1 tsp
Walnuts/Pecans – ¼ Cup/ chopped

Topping

Flour – 1/3 cup
Sugar- 2 Tbsps
Cinnamon – 1 level tsp
Margarine – 2 Tbsps
Lightly toasted rolled oats – 1/3 cup (this is soluble fibre!!)

Method:

• Core and peel apples. Chop into small pieces & toss these with lemon juice immediately after chopping or they’ll turn brown.
• Toss this well with the raisins + sugar + cinnamon + walnuts/pecans.
• Put into shallow pie dish (9″ or 23cm or 1L) and press lightly into place.
• To prepare crumble
• Mix flour + sugar+ cinnamon with a spoon in a dry bowl.
• Put in cold margarine & cut into pieces. Work lightly with finger tips or a pastry cutter to make a breadcrumb like texture.
• Now toss in the oats lightly with a spoon.
• To finish
• Put this crumble over the apple mixture, covering the whole thing well up to the edges. Press down lightly.
• Bake at 180deg pre-heated oven till top light brown and stewed apple juice begins to appear on edges/about 30mins.( If the top begins to brown too quickly, cover with foil until done).
• Allow to cool in dish. Refrigerate.

Note:Warm a slice of crumble in microwave before serving.(The kids like this cold as well). Can be served with a dollop of low fat whipped cream for extra indulgence!