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Autumn weather is finally here, and what’s cozier than snacking on fresh-from-the-oven sweets while watching too much fall TV? So, we’re happy to kick off a month of easy desserts, starting with this buttery fruit crumble from Suzanne Lenzer, author of Graze. Her recipe works with any fruit — pears, apples, peaches, berries or a mix. Here’s how to make it…
Whatever-You-Fancy Fruit Crumble
By Suzanne Lenzer, author of Graze
I have an absurd collection of ramekins. I have rounds, ovals and squares. I have deep and shallow. I have some in clusters of four, six and eight. Someday, when I have the garage sale I keep threatening to have, I’m going to go through the cupboard where I keep this ridiculous array of ramekins and figure out which I should keep and which I can live without.
My husband claims the perfect crisp or crumble (and they really are the same thing, aren’t they?) has equal parts fruit to pecan-oat-crunch in every bite, which makes sense. More sense than one person owning this many ramekins, for sure. Here’s our favorite version:
Recipe: Whatever-You-Fancy Fruit Crumble
Serves 4
You’ll need:
6 tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for the ramekins
4 cups fruit (whatever you like: sliced peaches, pears, plums, apricots, berries, etc.)
2–3 tbsp granulated sugar (depending on how sweet your fruit is)
Grated zest of 1 orange or lemon, plus 1 tbsp juice
3⁄4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour
1⁄2 tsp ground cinnamon, or to taste
Good pinch of sea salt
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup pecans
Preheat the oven to 375F. Butter small ramekins or one large gratin dish and transfer to a baking sheet. In a large bowl, toss the fruit with the granulated sugar and orange or lemon zest and juice and spread it out evenly in the ramekins or gratin dish.
In a food processor, combine the butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt and pulse until it looks like small peas and just begins to clump together, about 20 to 30 seconds. Add the oats and pecans and pulse just a few times to combine (they shouldn’t get too ground up).
Crumble the topping over the fruit and bake until golden and beginning to brown, 20 to 30 minutes for small ramekins and 45 to 50 minutes for a larger gratin dish.
Thank you so much, Suzanne! Your new cookbook is beautiful.
P.S. More recipes, including three-ingredient butter cookies, and blueberry cheesecake.
(Recipe excerpted from Graze: Inspiration for Small Plates and Meandering Meals by Suzanne Lenzer. Copyright © 2017. Photo by Nicole Franzen. Published by Rodale Books. Reproduced by arrangement with the publisher. This series is edited by Stella Blackmon.)
