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This apple and blueberry crumble is easy to make, versatile, and can feed a crowd (or yourself all week, dealer's choice). Easily switch out the filling ingredients for more variations. This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and vegan friendly.
Making crumble is easier than pie. No really, no pie crust is needed when you have a rivalry buttery oat crumbly topping. When paired with the sweet cooked fruit filling and a scoop of slowly melting vanilla ice cream on top, is there truly anything better?
This recipe is a fusion between my dairy-free apple crisp and my blueberry peach cobbler. Blueberries and apples are a great flavor pairing, which is why they work so well together.
Ingredients
- Blueberries - fresh or frozen work equally well.
- Apples - you can use any variety you wish. Use this apple guide as a reference to help you decide.
- Coconut sugar - a small amount is used to coat the blueberries and apples for the filling.
- Ground cinnamon - provides a warm, sweet, earthy flavor.
- Lemon juice - for brightness and some acidity to cut through the sweetness.
- Brown sugar - sweetener for the topping.
- Rolled oats - add a nice textural element to the topping. Use certified gluten-free oats if necessary.
- Slightly softened butter - this is what creates that beautiful crumb.
- All-purpose flour - either regular or gluten-free 1:1. This is for both the topping and the filling.
- Kosher salt - just a pinch to balance the flavors.
How to Make Apple and Blueberry Crumble
In a large bowl add the sliced apples with the remaining filling ingredients. Toss to combine.
Transfer the apple and blueberry filling to your pie dish or skillet and spread into a somewhat even layer.
Combine the rolled oats, flour, brown sugar, and salt. Add in the butter, squeezing it through the mixture with your hands until you have a crumbly texture.
Top the filling with the oat crumble and bake for 45 minutes.
Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations
Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.
How can you make this apple and blueberry crumble using what you already have? Here are some ideas…
- No blueberries? – you can also use blackberries, raspberries, or strawberries. Just keep in mind that raspberries or blackberries will have seeds.
- No coconut sugar? - sub cane sugar or maple syrup instead.
- Add chopped nuts - a handful of chopped pistachios, almonds, walnuts, or pecans would add a nice nuttiness.
Equipment
For this recipe, you'll need a cutting board, vegetable peeler, chef knife, dry measuring cups, measuring spoons, and a 9-inch pie pan or 10-inch skillet to hold the crumble.
Top Tip
Take the butter out a few minutes before making the crumble so that it's just slightly softened without turning to mush.
Frequently Asked Questions
Crumbles are more widely associated with the UK, whereas crisps are a popular dessert in the United States. Both use a combination of flour, sugar, and butter for the crumbly streusel-like topping. Crisps also use oats in the topping, but you'll find some crumble recipes do too (like ours).
Let it cool completely and then cover with plastic wrap or foil and store it in the fridge for up to 5 days. To prevent the topping from getting soggy in this time frame, I recommend not transferring it to a storage container and just keeping it in the dish you cooked it in.
Apple and Blueberry Crumble
Ingredients
Blueberry Apple Filling
- 5 apples of choice about 5.5 - 6 cups
- 1 ½ cups blueberries fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or another granulated or liquid sweetener
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour regular or gluten-free
Oat Crumble Topping
- ⅔ cup rolled oats use gluten-free if necessary
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour gluten-free or regular
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons butter, slightly softened dairy-free or regular
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt reduce to ⅛ if using another type
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Peel, core, and cut the apple into thin slices (roughly ¼ inch thick). The easiest way to do this is to place your peeled apples on a cutting board and then cut them four times around the core. You then lay each of those pieces flat and cut them into thin slices.
- In a large bowl add the sliced apples with the remaining filling ingredients. Toss to combine and transfer to your pie pan or skillet and spread into a somewhat even layer.
- Combine the rolled oats, flour, brown sugar, and salt in another bowl. Add in the butter, squeezing it through the mixture with your hands until you have a crumbly texture. Evenly distribute it on top of the filling.
- Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and serve with a scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream.
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