Easy Apple Crumble

It is hard to think of a dessert more simple than Apple Crumble. Even my mother, who is an excellent cook but not much of a baker (sorry Mum) can produce a decent Apple crumble. Crumble was developed out of necessity in Britain during World War II. Strict rationing meant that the ingredients to make an actual apple pie were hard to come by and the time to make a pie was also lacking so improvisation led to the humble apple crumble. It is still a dessert you can turn to when time and ingredients are limited. To make things a little more special for a dinner party try serving the Apple Crumble in individual ramekins.

Ingredients
8 cooking apples peeled, cored and cut into chunks
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp sugar
1 pinch cinnamon

For crumble topping
300g plain flour
175g brown sugar
200g butter, cubed at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 180C

2. Place the butter, apples, sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan over low heat and cook for around 5 minutes or until the apples start to break down slightly.

3. Meanwhile combine the ingredients for the crumble topping in a bowl and rub the butter into the sugar, flour and cinnamon until there are no chunks of butter left.

4. Spoon the apple mixture into a baking dish or individual ramekins and top with the crumble topping.

5. Bake for 10 minutes or until the crumble topping starts to turn golden.

6. Serve with cream, ice-cream or custard.