Christmas crumble

An apple crumble with a festive makeover, with cranberries and an oat and hazelnut topping.

I love a crumble throughout the year, so loved making this one which is an apple crumble with a Christmas makeover.

The filling is spiced apples and cranberries, and the buttery, oaty crumble topping has hazelnuts added into the mix for an extra crunch and lovely nutty flavour.

Serve with a generous dollop of clotted cream for the ultimate Christmas dessert.

You’ll need (serves 6):

• 100g plain flour

• 80g oats

• 75g chopped hazelnuts or mixed nuts

• 140g caster sugar

• 170g salted butter, cut into small cubes

• 750g apples (cored weight)

• 100g dried cranberries

• 50g sugar

• 1 tbsp mixed spice

• Clotted cream, to serve

Preheat oven to 190C. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, oats, nuts, sugar and butter. Use your fingers to rub the mixture together until you’ve got an even, crumbly mix.

Add the cranberries to a small bowl or mug and pour boiling water over them to plump them up. Leave to sit while you prepare the apples.

Cut the apples into chunks, removing the cores. I don’t bother peeling. You want 750g of apples after you’ve removed the cores.

Transfer the apple chunks to a baking dish. Drain the cranberries and add them too.

In a small bowl, mix the sugar with the mixed spice, then pour the sugar over the apples and cranberries. Mix a little, but don’t worry too much.

Top the apples and cranberries with the crumble mixture, making sure it’s evenly distributed.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Leave to sit for 10 minutes or so before serving. Finish with a generous dollop of clotted cream.