Vegan chocolate crumble with plums
So, who was paying attention to our recipe for cherry cobbler and could now say what distinguishes it from a crumble?
- For the plums:
- 1 kg plums, 50 g (brown) sugar, 1 packet vanilla sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 pinch pepper, 2.5 tbsp cornstarch
- For the crumble:
- 200 g crunchy muesli (e.g., Barnhouse Krunchy Dark Chocolate Nut) 100 g flour 75 g vegan butter (softened) 50 g sugar Salt
- To serve:
- vegan vanilla ice cream
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wash the plums, halve them, remove the pits, and then cut them into wedges.
- Place the plum wedges in the baking dish. Add (brown) sugar, vanilla sugar, cinnamon, ground ginger, a small pinch of pepper, and cornstarch, and mix everything together. Set the dish aside.
- To make the crumble, first roughly mix flour, a pinch of salt, softened vegan butter, and sugar to form a crumbly dough. Then add the granola and mix it into the crumbly dough.
- Distribute the crumble topping over the plums. Bake at 180°C for approximately 45 minutes, until the filling is simmering and bubbling, and the crumble topping is crisp and browned (cover the dish if it gets too dark before then).
- Let the crumble cool for a few minutes and eat it while still warm with some vanilla ice cream or vegan whipped cream.
That's right – it's the pastry topping, because as the name "crumble" suggests, our fruit layer is nestled under a streusel topping today – and a very special one at that. Sure, streusel is great on its own, but this time it's hidden with crunchy muesli pieces that give your crumble a wonderfully chocolatey kick. For this, we used the "Krunchy" "Dark Chocolate Nut" variety from Barnhouse. We not only devour their crunchy mueslis for breakfast, but we've also used them to create these frozen strawberry bars.
This time, the crumb topping contains, among other things, dark chocolate, wholegrain oat flakes, hazelnuts, and coconut flakes, all of which complement the plums perfectly. Like the other Krunchy granolas, this variety is also palm oil-free, using European sunflower oil and regional oats instead. And of course, you could bake the crumb topping with any flavor you like, such as chocolate, multigrain, or amaranth. You can find barnhouse granolas in organic markets or directly in their online shop.
If plums aren't in season, you can bake this recipe with any fruit – that's what makes crumble such a versatile dessert that almost always turns out perfectly. You only need to keep a few things in mind:
How much fruit? Honestly, all the quantities can be adjusted to the size of your baking dish. You can even bake a mini crumble with just two apples – and then eat it all by yourself.
Do I really need cornstarch? Yes! Of course, the fruit layer under the crumble topping should be moist, but without cornstarch, it often isn't, tending instead towards being runny (this also depends on the pectin content of the fruit). If you don't have any cornstarch, simply add some flour.
Fruit isn't everything. As delicious as your chosen fruit may be, give it a little more attention and season it. Plums, for example, need sweetness, but a touch of acidity balances that perfectly. Vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, and pepper (yes, even pepper!) add subtle flavor notes. So, do some research to find out which spices go best with which fruits.
