Hands down the best fruit dessert I’ve made all year: sweet, lightly-spiced plums topped with a chewy, crunchy, cookie-like crumble. The topping is crustier than a cobbler, chewier than a crisp, and as soon as we finished the first one, I wanted to make a second. So I did! With apples.
Served warm and topped with lightly-sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, this is a lovely dessert. I didn’t have any candied ginger for the filling, so my husband made ginger ice cream to serve on the side. Smart guy. Good husband.
I liked the plum crumble best. My husband liked the apple crumble best. It looks like we’ll just have to rotate between the two… on a weekly basis. Or maybe we’ll just keep experimenting until we find the perfect fruit for this crumble. Next up, I’m thinking pears and dried cherries. Maybe a little caramel sauce drizzled on top….
Plum Crumble
Serves 6 to 8
12 purple Italian or prune plums, cut in half and pitted (or 6 large plums, quartered)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons plus 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon plus 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 heaping tablespoons finely chopped candied ginger (optional)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, well beaten
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
Vanilla ice cream, ginger ice cream, or whipped cream
1. Place plums in medium bowl. Heat oven to 375 degrees, with rack in center.
2. In a small bowl, thoroughly mix brown sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoons flour, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, ground ginger and the (optional) candied ginger. Add to plums and mix well. Arrange plums skin side up in an ungreased, deep 9-inch pie plate.
3. In a small bowl, combine granulated sugar, baking powder, remaining flour and cinnamon and the salt. Mix well. Stir in egg. Using hands, mix thoroughly to produce little particles. Sprinkle over plums.
4. Drizzle butter evenly over crumb mixture and bake 30 to 35 minutes. Crumble is done when top is browned and plums yield easily when pricked with cake tester. Remove from oven and cool.
5. Serve crumble warm or refrigerate for up to two days or freeze, well covered. If reheating, bring to room temperature, then warm at 300 degrees. Serve with ice cream.
Trying to figure out whether the plum or the apple is better is kind of like trying to pick a winner between Casablanca vs. Citizen Kane. The real answer: watch (and eat!) them both!
An amazing dessert, and a very funny post.
And pears and dried cherries….hmm, we may have yet another contender….
[...] wave carried me into fall where I made plum crumble with ginger ice cream, and that became my favorite dessert of the year. Cobbler for summer, crumble for autumn, and now [...]