Cardamom Apple Crumble

Keeping with the fridge clean out theme with this cardamom apple crumble. This dessert is very simple and made with a ton of pantry staples like flour, brown sugar, and oats. All I did was add a little apple and warm spices to make it ready for fall. This crumble can be made with any firm fruit like pears or green apples, but I chose honey crisp apples just because I love them. This recipe is adapted from this one.

Ingredients, Adjustments & Substitutions

Apple filling

• Honey crisp apples – Honey crisp apples are the perfect apples for baking because they hold their shape really well in the oven. A good substitute for honey crisp apples are green apples or bosc pears.
• Lemon juice – Lemon juice adds brightness to the filling, and it prevents the apples from oxidizing/turning brown. This recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of lemon juice which is about 1/2 a lemon.
• Granulated & light brown sugar – Both sugars add sweetness and moisture to the filling. You can use all granulated and all brown sugar, but I prefer to use both. The difference is brown sugar has molasses which gives the filling a molasses, toffee like flavor.
• Cinnamon, nutmeg, & cardamom – These warm spices bring out those fall flavors in the filling. I used the ground version of all these spices.
• Corn starch – There is a lot of liquid in this filling between the juices in the apples, lemon juice, and the moisture in the sugars, so corn starch helps thicken the mixture.

Crumble topping

• All purpose flour – This is the main dry ingredient in the crumble.
• Rolled oats – Rolled oats add a different texture to the crumble. Quick oats also work for this topping.
• Light brown sugar – Adds sweetness to the crumble. You can use either light or dark brown sugar. Dark brown sugar will make the crumble sweeter because it has more molasses.
• Baking powder – Adds a little airiness to the crumble.
• Unsalted butter – Adds a nutty flavor and works to bind the crumble ingredients together.
• Salt – Brings out the flavor of the other ingredients.

Making my cardamom apple crumble

This is one of the easiest dessert recipes out there and comes together in less than an hour. First preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Next combine all the ingredients for the apple filling into a bowl. Mix until combined and set aside. Make sure the apple cubes are coated in the sugars and spices. In a separate bowl, combine all the ingredients for the crumble topping. Mix until it comes together. Divide the apple filling evenly among 6 ramekins (3.5 inches in diameter and 1.8 inches tall). Top each with the crumble topping. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the crumble is golden brown. Top with a drizzle of caramel and a scoop of vanilla ice cream and serve!

Tips on how to make the perfect cardamom apple crumble

How to prevent apples from turning brown

Unless you have amazing cutting skills, it probably takes you more than a few minutes to cut up your apples. When you leave apples exposed to the air for an extended period of time, they tend to turn an unappetizing brown color. One tip I learned to prevent this from happening is to add them to a bowl of water covered in a wet towel. The water protects the apples from turning brown. Another method you can use is to coat the apples in some sort of acid like vinegar or lemon. There is lemon juice in this recipe, so you can squeeze lemon juice over your apples as you slice them.

Don’t make your apple cubes too small

Apples will shrink in the oven, so make sure to cut them into bigger cubes to compensate for the shrinkage. About 1 inch – 1.5 inches should work.

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