Apple and Blackberry Crumble

What better to way to welcome Autumn, than a blackberry and apple crumble? This recipe is a healthy twist on an apple crumble using freshly picked blackberries, and muesli and nuts for an extra crunchy topping!

Ingredients

Filling

1kg cooking apples

400g blackberries

4oz demerara sugar

1 lemon (squeezed)

Topping

6oz plain Flour

5oz butter

2oz demerara sugar

3oz muesli  

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C

2. Peel, core and chop the apples into small chunks. Squeeze the lemon juice over the apples and mix

3. Place the apples and blackberries in a large ceramic dish and pour the sugar over the fruit. Mix them all together

4. Place the flour in a large bowl and then rub in the butter until it resembles breadcrumbs

5. Add the muesli and the sugar to the mix and combine

6. Spoon the crumble topping evenly over the fruit 

7. Bake for 45 minutes or until the fruit is cooked and bubbling juices seep through the topping

8. Serve with cream or custard.

Cranberry Sauce

We always have cranberry sauce at Christmas, it is as traditional as the turkey and sprouts. However I have never thought to make it. Admittedly last Christmas I wasn't cooking as much as I am now so I probably would not have thought to attempt it, thinking it was much harder than it actually is, but this year things have changed. It adheres to my 'blog project' perfectly, as mentioned in previous posts, as it is something my mum and I would usually buy for our Christmas lunch in a jar. And it is so simple and delicious. I had a look at some recipes and the majority of them only contain three ingredients: cranberries, sugar and water (orange juice in this case). Others contain Port and cloves, almonds and lemon zest, basically, you can add as little or as many ingredients to it as you like it's up to you. Christmas lunch would not be complete without it. 

Ingredients:

340 g fresh cranberries
100 g light brown muscavado sugar 

100 ml orange juice.
zest of one clementine
30 ml port (optional) 

Method:

Tip the sugar and orange juice into a pan, then bring to the boil. Stir in the cranberries, then simmer until tender but still holding their shape.

This will take about 8-10 minutes. Keep stirring. Take off the heat and let it cool. The sauce will thicken as it cools down. It will keep in the fridge for about a week. When you want serve it, bring the sauce up to room temperature.

Raspberry and White Chocoloate Muffins

Ingredients:

Basic muffin recipe
2 ripe bananas
1 egg
100 g muscavado sugar
300 g wholemeal flour
75 g butter
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
275 ml Buttermilk
1 tsp demarara sugar.

Additional ingredients:


200 g raspberries
100 g white chocolate, broken into small chunks.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C, and line a muffin tin with cases. I followed the same method/recipe from a previous post, 'blueberry muffins' so follow that recipe up to the point where you add the blueberries and instead add the raspberries and white chocolate. Cook for 20-25 minutes.

Verdict:

I used some baking cases which SEMI EXPAT had given me all the way from Australia. They taste perfect.

Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients:

Makes 12

2 Ripe bananas
250 grams blueberries
300 grams wholemeal self raising flour
100g light muscovado sugar
284ml carton buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
75 grams butter
1 egg
1 tsp demerara sugar
1 tsp porridge oats

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4 and line a muffin tin with cases. Firstly peel the bananas and mash in a bowl, using a fork.

Mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and brown sugar together in a large mixing bowl.

Make a well in the centre and add the buttermilk, egg, butter and bananas.

Quickly fold the ingredients together until just incorporated, taking care not to over mix. Tip in the blueberries and give the batter one or two stirs.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cases and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar and porridge oats.

Put the muffins in the middle of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until they are well risen and golden on the top; a skewer inserted into the centre of the muffin should emerge clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. This recipe is from Gordon Ramsey's Healthy Appetite (2008). The muffins are really delicious and so much healthier than usual ones as they are low in saturated fat and full of fibre - amazing!