Apple Pear And Ginger Crumble

This is a very simple recipe for Apple Pear And Ginger Crumble that you can use when there isn’t a lot of time and it’s just you in your kitchen! Strawberries and apples are a twist on an old classic, but they’re so darn good together. This crumble is great for breakfast or dessert — especially when paired with some vanilla ice cream.

Pear and Ginger Crumble

A warming dessert that everyone will love, this Pear and Ginger Crumble is easy to make and tastes delicious! Juicy pears with ginger in a tasty caramel sauce topped with a buttery pecan and oat topping.

Why This Crumble is a Perfect Weekend Dessert

A crumble is such a lovely treat, with soft fruit topped with a lovely buttery crumbly topping, what’s not to love! They’re perfect for a cosy pudding after Sunday lunch. And they’re so easy to make with minimum effort.

This pear crumble is no different. Soft sweet pears with a generous of helping of ginger all topped with a nutty, oaty topping. This crumble is sweet and warming and perfect for a late winter treat. 

What You’ll Need

• Pears – I use Conference pears to make this, look for pears that hold up well to cooking. Bosc pears, Anjou pears or Concorde will work well. I use pears that are slightly under-ripe, they will cope with the heat and not turn to mush.
• Flour – You’ll need plain or all-purpose flour for this crumble, you won’t need to sieve it.
• Oats – Old fashioned oats or jumbo oats work best in this crumble, instant oats will not work here.
• Butter – I use full-fat salted butter.
• Ginger – To get that ginger flavour and heat I use ground ginger and raw ginger root, finely grated. You could also use stem ginger here if you wish.
• Nuts – I’ve used pecans in the crumble, you could also use walnuts or almonds. If you have a nut allergy you can just omit them altogether.
• Sugar – Light brown muscovado sugar works really well with the pears, you should find it in all good supermarkets.

Why This Recipe Works

• So easy to make! This really is such an easy yet impressive dessert.
• That perfect buttery topping with the addition of oats and pecans makes this crumble topping delicious and perfect with pears.
• Pears in a caramel sauce with ginger is delicious! Pear and ginger is such a great combination.

How To Make Pear and Ginger Crumble

1. Make the topping – add the flour, oats sugar and cubed butter to a large mixing bowl. Using your fingers rub the butter into the dry ingredients until you have a rough breadcrumb consistency. Stir in the chopped pecans and give it all a good stir.
2. Cook the pears – melt the butter in a skillet. Add the ground ginger and raw ginger and cook for a minute or two. Add the sugar and once the sauce bubbles up then add the pears. You’ll just need to cook the pears for a little bit before you add the topping.
3. Add the topping – Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the pears. Then bake in the oven for about 30 minutes. Serve warm with some good ice cream.

Pro Tips For Making A Perfect Pear Crumble

• Use slightly under-ripe pears. The pears should be firm, if they are too soft they’ll just turn to mush when baked.
• Choose the right pear. I use conference pears for this crumble, they hold up well when cooked. Bosc pears, Anjou pears or Concorde will work well too.
• Slice the pears widthways. I try and slice them all the same size, about ½ inch thick.
• Pears oxidise. If you are preparing the pears in advance they may go brown, to avoid this rub the pears in lemon juice.
• Don’t overwork the topping. It’s ok to have little clusters of butter, sugar and nuts in a crumble. A rough breadcrumb consistency is perfect for a crumble.
• Use real butter. I know I say this a lot, but you really will get the best results when you use real full-fat butter. I use salted butter which adds to the flavour of this crumble.

How To Serve A Pear Crumble

This really is best served warm. You can serve it with a good vanilla ice cream, a dollop of whipped cream or clotted cream.

Can I Freeze This Crumble?

Yes, you can. You can either freeze the baked crumble or freeze the pear filling and crumble topping separately. To freeze the baked crumble transfer the cooled crumble to a suitable container then wrap it well and pop it in the freezer.

To cook the crumble from frozen, cover with foil and bake at 180C/356F for about 1 ½ hours then turn up the heat to 220C/428F and bake for a further45 minutes. Remove the foil for the last 15 minutes. This is the best method.

To freeze the filling, leave it to cool then transfer to freezer bags, you will need to defrost and heat the fruit to make the crumble. To freeze the topping, place it in a bag and freeze. You can use the topping from frozen.

To cook the crumble using the frozen topping, place the hot filling in a dish, fluff up the topping with a fork, cover the fruit with the topping then bake at 180F/356F for 30 minutes or until the filling is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.

Pear Ginger Crumble

• Level: Easy
• Total: 1 hr 20 min

• Prep: 30 min
• Inactive: 10 min
• Cook: 40 min

• Yield: 8 serving

Ingredients

Deselect All

Topping:

1/4 cup oat flour or whole wheat flour

2/3 cup old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup canola oil

Filling:

3 pounds firm but ripe pears, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups reduced-fat vanilla ice cream or frozen vanilla yogurt, optional

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. For the topping: Combine the ingredients in a medium bowl and work together with a fork or with your fingertips until the ingredients are moistened.
3. For the filling: Combine the pears slices, lemon juice, and ginger in a large bowl. Add the sugar and flour and toss to blend.
4. Spray an 8 by 8-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Transfer the pear mixture to the dish. Sprinkle the topping over the pears. Bake crumble until the pears are tender and the topping is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature, with a scoop of ice cream, if desired.

Pear, apple and ginger crumble

Dr Rupy’s store cupboard crumble is seriously good, and only costs under £1 per portion. Leftovers can even be enjoyed for breakfast! (Doctor’s orders!)

Each serving provides 522 kcal, 12g protein, 74g carbohydrate (of which 53g sugars), 18g fat (of which 7g saturates), 8g fibre and 0.4g salt.

Preparation time

less than 30 mins

Cooking time

10 to 30 mins

Serves

Serves 6

Dietary

Ingredients

• 2 x 410g tins pear halves in juice, drained and roughly chopped, juice reserved
• 600g/1lb 5oz apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
• 30g/1oz honey
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 180g/6oz raisins or sultanas
• 1 lemon, zest only

For the topping

• 200g/7oz rolled oats
• 50g/1¾oz flaked almonds
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 30g/1oz honey
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• pinch salt

To serve

• 500g/1lb 2oz thick Greek yoghurt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4.
2. Place the chopped pears into a large saucepan. Pour in most of the reserved liquid, reserving a couple of spoonfuls for sweetening the yoghurt later.
3. Add the apples to the pears, along with the honey, ginger, raisins and lemon zest. Set over a high heat, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat, cover and cook for 5 minutes, or until soft. Tip into an ovenproof dish.
4. To make the topping, put the oats in a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Add the almonds, cinnamon, honey and oil, then stir to combine. Spread the oat mixture over the fruit in an even layer and bake for 20 minutes until golden-brown.
5. Stir the remaining pear juice into the yoghurt to sweeten. Serve with the crumble.

Recipe Tips

If you have any apples that are looking a bit tired and wrinkled, they’re perfect for this crumble. Equally, if you have any pears that are on the turn, they can work well in place of the tinned pears.

Any leftover crumble keeps for up to 3 days in the fridge and can be reheated in the microwave or in a low oven. It also freezes well.

Because this crumble doesn’t contain the usual butter/flour mixture, you can turn any leftovers into a delicious bircher muesli for breakfast. Stir some natural yoghurt into the leftover crumble, cover and place in the fridge overnight. Eat it as it is, or top with a handful of fresh fruit, nuts or seeds.

Apple, pear and
ginger crumble
Serves: 6
Time
Preparation time 15 minutes
Cooking time 30 minutes
Ingredients
• low-calorie spray oil
• 411g tinned pear halves in juice
• 600g Bramley apples, peeled, halved, cored and cut into chunks
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cornflour, dissolved in 2 tablespoons cold water
• 75g (6) reduced-fat ginger snap biscuits
• 75g plain porridge oats
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
To serve
• 2 x 175g pots of low-fat vanilla yogurt
Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC or gas mark 4 and spray a medium ovenproof
   dish with low-calorie spray oil.
2. Pour the tinned pears with their juice into a large
   saucepan with the apple chunks and set over a
   moderate heat while you add the sugar, cinnamon
   and ginger. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add dissolved cornflour and stir while the sauce thickens, then pour into
   the prepared dish.
4. To make the crumble, place 6 ginger snap biscuits into a freezer bag along
   with porridge oats and ground cinnamon and then bash with a rolling pin
   until it resembles a crumble. Spoon evenly over the cooked fruit.
5. Set the fruit crumble into a hot oven for 20 minutes until toasted and
   bubbling.
6. Spoon into bowls and serve with a dollop of vanilla yogurt.
   Method
   You can add a little more sugar if the apples are too tart.
   This recipe also works well using 2 teaspoons of artificial sweetener instead
   of sugar.