Apple and blackberry crumble with an oat topping and pastry ghosts.
Sharp blackberries and soft apples beneath a buttery crumble. A few pastry ghosts turn a familiar favourite into a Halloween pudding without making it any less comforting.
Serves 6 · Prep 25 minutes · Cook 40–45 minutes
Ingredients
For the fruit
- 750g cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into 2cm pieces
- 250g blackberries, fresh or frozen
- 75g light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp water
For the topping
- 150g plain flour
- 100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 75g rolled oats
- 75g light brown sugar
- A pinch of salt
For the ghosts
- 100g ready-rolled shortcrust pastry
- A little milk, for brushing
- 1 tsp caster sugar
Method
- Heat the oven to 180°C fan / 200°C conventional / gas 6. Have a roughly 2-litre baking dish ready.
- Toss the apples and blackberries with the sugar, cornflour and cinnamon. Tip into the dish and add the water.
- Rub the flour and butter together until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the oats, sugar and salt.
- Spread the topping loosely over the fruit without pressing it down.
- Bake for 40–45 minutes, until golden and bubbling at the edges. If using frozen blackberries, allow an extra 5–10 minutes if needed.
- Meanwhile, cut six small ghosts from the pastry and place on a lined baking tray. Make eye and mouth holes with a skewer, gently widening them so they remain visible after baking.
- Brush lightly with milk, sprinkle with caster sugar and bake on a separate shelf for 12–15 minutes, until lightly golden. Check them early if the pastry is thin.
- Let the crumble stand for 10 minutes. Add the pastry ghosts just before serving, with custard, cream or vanilla ice cream.
Kitchen note: taste a piece of apple before you begin. Particularly sharp cooking apples may need a little more sugar.