Raymond Blanc's strawberry crumble recipe
A traditional English dessert… perfected by the French! I cook the crumble topping separately from the fruit, so it stays crisp, light and delicate. You can vary the fruit with the seasons, adjusting the cooking time accordingly – apples, pears, apricots, plums and rhubarb all make lovely crumbles.
Great served with a scoop of raspberry sorbet.
Chefs tips:
1 Macerating the fruit with sugar draws out the juices, creating a wonderful coulis. It also heightens the flavour of the fruit by at least 30 per cent.
2 Pre-cooking the crumble ensures the gluten in the flour is cooked out and makes the crumble topping lighter and more digestible.
3 The butter emulsifies with the sugar to create a wonderful glaze for the fruit.
4 Planning ahead Make the crumble discs a day ahead; store in a sealed container.
Special equipment:
Food processor, 8cm pastry cutter
Ingredients
- 480 g strawberries
- 60 g caster sugar
- 2 tbsp water
- 30 g unsalted butter
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp kirsch (optional)
- 80 g plain flour
- 50 g caster sugar
- 20 g brown sugar
- 55 g unsalted butter
Details
- Cuisine: English
- Recipe Type: Dessert
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 10 mins
- Cooking Time: 10 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- To macerate the strawberries: halve the berries, place in a bowl and sprinkle with half of the sugar. Set aside while you prepare the crumble.
- To make the crumble In a food processor, pulse all the ingredients together to a light crumbly texture, then press together and cut into 2-3cm cubes. Place on a small baking tray, cover and freeze for 1 hour until solid.
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/Gas 5. Pulse the cubes of dough in a food processor to break into small pieces of crumble. Spread evenly on a baking tray to a 5mm thickness and bake for 7 minutes until golden brown. While still warm and pliable, cut out 4 discs with the 8cm cutter. Bake these for a further 3 minutes.
- To prepare the berries: put the water into a large, heavy-based saucepan, add the remaining 30g sugar and leave for a few minutes, then dissolve over a medium-high heat and cook to a very pale blond caramel. Immediately add the butter3, then the strawberries, lemon juice and kirsch, if using. Heat for 30 seconds.
- To serve: divide the warm strawberries between individual dishes and top each serving with a crumble disc. Add a scoop of raspberry sorbet, or vanilla ice cream, or a dollop or crème fraîche if you prefer.
Recipe taken from Kitchen Secrets. Photo courtesy of Jean Cazals
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Apple and blackberry crumble recipe
Spiced cranberry and apple crumble recipe