A classic recipe for apple crumble made with granny smith apples and an oaty crumble topping. Serve with warm custard or ice cream!
Call me old fashioned, but I think you can't beat a Classic Apple Crumble like my Nana used to make. There are many different versions of apple crumble but I truly believe this simple, traditional recipe is the best.
Lightly spiced granny smith apples topped with a super easy but incredibly tasty buttery, oat crumble.
If you can't get granny smith apples, you can use a substitute. However the tart flavour of these apples goes so well with the crumble. For another amazing apple dessert, be sure to check out our Caramel Apple Sponge Pudding! Or for delicious crumble with a twist, check out our Feijoa and Pear Crumble.
How to make Apple Crumble:
Peel and chop the apples into 1cm thick slices. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.
In a medium saucepan, add the apples, water, half the sugar, cloves and lemon juice. Simmer over a medium heat.
Add the remaining sugar if sweetness is required. Cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the apples have softened but retain their shape. Remove from heat.
Mix together the crumble topping ingredients in a medium bowl.
Pour the apples into a baking dish then crumble over the oat mixture, breaking it up with our fingertips as you go.
Bake for 30 minutes or until crisp and golden. Serve warm with cream, custard or ice cream.
If you're looking for some more interesting dessert recipes, check out my yummy Pumpkin Pie, epic Super Sized Berry Pavlova and my very cute and delicious Mini Sticky Date Puddings. Or, another lovely apple recipe is the Easy Apple Slice.
Recipe FAQs:
Granny smith apples are perfect for this recipe. They have a lovely tart flavour that goes so well with the sweet, buttery, crumble topping.
Sadly no. The crumble contains regular flour alongside oats. And while you could substitute the flour for a gluten free alternative, we don't have any "gluten-free oats" available in NZ. You could swap these for some shredded coconut and slivered almonds, although it would be a slightly different texture.
Storage:
Apple crumble will keep well in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
Top tips:
- Stone fruit or berries can be added or substituted for apples. Just keep in mind you may need to adjust the amount of sugar you add depending on how sweet your fruit is. Start with half the required amount then add more if you need it.
- Walnuts can make a lovely addition to the crumble topping.
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Classic Apple Crumble
A classic recipe for apple crumble made with granny smith apples and an oaty crumble topping.
Ingredients
- 5-6 granny smith apples (750g peeled and chopped)
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1⁄4 tsp ground cloves
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1⁄4 cup white sugar
Crumble:
- 100g butter, melted
- 1⁄2 cup brown sugar (100g)
- 1 1⁄2 cup rolled oats (160g)
- 3⁄4 cup plain flour (110g)
- 1⁄4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1⁄4 tsp mixed spice
Instructions
- Peel the apples and chop into 1cm wide pieces. Preheat oven to 180°C fan bake.
- In a medium saucepan add the apples, water, half the white sugar, cloves and lemon juice. Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat stirring occasionally.
- Add the remaining sugar - if sweetness is needed. Cook 5 - 10 minutes until the apples soften up but still hold their shape. Remove from the heat.
- In a bowl, mix the melted butter and brown sugar. Add the oats, flour and spices, mix together.
- Pour the apples into a baking dish. Crumble over the oat mixture, breaking it up with your fingertips.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the crumble is crisp and golden.
- Serve warm with hot custard, fresh cream or ice cream.
Notes
- Granny smith apples can be substituted for other types of apples or even stone fruit if you prefer.
- If you like a bit of crunch in your apples, you can skip the stewing stage and leave out the water.
- Nuts can calso be added to the crumble mixture.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 306Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 27mgSodium: 87mgCarbohydrates: 48gFiber: 4gSugar: 25gProtein: 4g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Kathy says
Made the classic apple crumble tonite. Have not copied a recipe into my book for years. Gonna change that now. Totally delicious and a hit with all. Cheers
VJ cooks says
I'm so pleased you liked it. And I totally get the recipe book part - you have to know you love it before committing it to the book!
Carol Delaney says
This is the easiest dessert I have ever made; also it is delicious. I left out the spices because we don’t like them, but added some frozen raspberries that were lurking at the back of the freezer. Other crumble recipes go sticky and slimey - this one is sweet and crunchy. I will make this regularly. Thank you so much!
VJ cooks says
Oh what a great idea. Yes the crumble could go on top of any of your favourite berries or stone fruit. Thank you for the lovely feedback 🙂
Mya says
Mmmmmmm, 10/10 easy!. This is one of those recipes where you have to dish up everyone's plates yourself, otherwise they'll start fighting over the crumble, haha!. Either that or make a double batch of the crumble, hehe.
VJ cooks says
Haha I know exactly what you mean! And no one can start eating until they're all even. So glad you enjoyed it.
Jenna says
Delicious! Didn’t have the spices so added some cinnamon in with the Apple. Made this with my 5yo - such an easy one for the kids to help with!
VJ cooks says
That's awesome.
Karen says
Plain flour or Self Raising Flour ??? Always used the latter before
VJ cooks says
Hi Karen, As stated in the recipe, this crumble is made with plain flour, not self-raising flour.
Shar says
Hi there, Is it possible to make this with regular red apples? I have some left over apples and was wondering about making apple crumble with it.
VJ cooks says
Of course, any apples will work 🙂
Olivia says
Hi, I'm loving your recipes, I was just wondering can the plain flour be substitute for gluten free flour?
Thankyou
VJ cooks says
Yes it can! If you're cooking for someone who can't eat gluten though, please be mindful that there are no certified gluten free oats in New Zealand. Having said that, some gluten intolerant people can tolerate oats.
Deborah Walker says
What size dish did you use please?
VJ cooks says
Hi Deborah, I no longer have this dish sorry! But you can't really go wrong with crumble - if it's slightly smaller you'll just have a thicker layer. If using a rectangle dish I'd suggest about 20cm x 30cm.