Apple Crumble

 
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I often watch some of our favourite cooks make an apple crumble on TV, and when I see them remove and discard the nutritious apple peel, I want to shout Nooooo! what about the pectin?? 

This apple crumble contains two healthy ingredients – apples, which are rich in pectin (more on that later), and cinnamon, which can lower blood sugar. And it contains no added sugar – which together, turn it into a very healthy pudding. 

Apples, as mentioned are rich in pectin – which is a soluble fibre that acts as a prebiotic in the gut, feeding gut bacteria and promoting a healthy gut. Pectin also keeps you fuller for longer, and has a beneficial effect on blood sugar and insulin. The more sour the apple, the higher the pectin, so I’m using Bramley cooking apples. and using the skins, because that’s where a lot of the pectin is found.

Cinnamon is high in antioxidants called polyphenols  which protect the body’s cells, it has anti-inflammatory properties, anti-viral, bacterial and fungal properties, lowers blood pressure, and has been shown in studies to increase insulin sensitivity – lowering blood sugar.

Instead of sugar, this crumble is sweetened by sultanas, apple juice, and an eating apple.

nb: Serve it with whipped cream rather than double or clotted cream, because whipped cream contains a lot of air, and 2 tablespoons can contain up to 30g less fat than 2 tablespoons of double or clotted.

Ingredients

  • 2 large (400g) Bramley cooking apples

  • 1 Eating apple

  • 1 Teaspoon cinnamon

  • 100ml Apple juice

  • 150g Plain or self-raising flour

  • 100g Whole oats

  • 100g Sultanas

  • 50g Cold butter

  • 1 Egg, beaten

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees C, 160 degrees C fan gas 5.

  2. Don’t peel the apples, remove the cores and chop into medium chunks.

  3. Put the Bramley apples into a saucepan with the cinnamon and apple juice and cook on a high heat for 1 minute, then simmer for 4 minutes.

  4. Pour the apples into an oven-proof pie dish and add the chopped eating apple.

  5. Sieve 70g of the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.

  6. Put the other 70g of the flour in a blender with the sultanas and 40g of the oats and blitz until it resembles large breadcrumbs.

  7. Mix together with the flour, add the egg and mix together.

  8. Spread the crumble mixture over the apples, place in the oven and bake for 25 – 30 minutes until golden brown.

  9. Serve with whipped cream or custard.

 
Healthy PuddingsYinka Thomas