Nan’s Rhubarb Crumble

As children, my cousin’s, brother and I loved our Nan’s homemade crumbles. My grandparents lived through the second world war when food was rationed and people were encouraged to grow their own. I remember my grandparents had a pear tree in the back garden and my Grandad grew potatoes.

During my childhood I always remember the neighbour, Mr Lowe, grew lots of fruits and vegetables in his back garden. As a child I used to peer over the fence to look at all the different colours of the vegetables and fruit. Mr Lowe would always kindly offer my grandparents the fruits of his labour and I think rhubarb was a food he grew in large amounts.

Although my Nan didn’t like cooking much, she would always make sure that food was eaten. When Mr Lowe gave my Nan rhubarb she would always stew the fruit and then freeze it in batches. When my Nan decided to make a crumble all she would have to do was take a batch from the freezer, wait for it to defrost and then make the topping.

All that would be left to do would be to put the crumble in the oven. Nan would make her crumble with white flour, butter and sugar. Due to my gluten allergy I can no longer eat white flour, so I have adapted my Nan’s recipe. Plus I have thrown a few of my favourite ingredients in. Crumble is a great way to eat rhubarb and this dish is definitely a winner in our house.

Serves 4

Equipment needed

• Sharp knife
• Chopping board
• Large pan
• Jug
• Grater
• Nutribullet or food processor
• Mixing bowl
• Teaspoon
• Baking dish

Ingredients

• Rhubarb x 1 large bunch
• Ginger x 1 inch piece
• Water x 50mls
• Ground cinnamon x 1 tsp
• Pecans x 100g
• Gluten free oats x 100g
• Coconut or Brown sugar x 50g
• Coconut oil x 50g
• Vanilla powder x 1/4 tsp

Method

• Start by chopping the top and the bottom from the rhubarb and discard of these pieces.
• Next wash the rhubarb under the tap to remove any dirt from the stalks.
• Now chop the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces and put into the large pan.
• Remove the skin from the ginger and finely grate the piece into the pan.
• Add in the cinnamon and water.
• Mix all these ingredients together and put the pan on a high heat.
• Bring to the boil, turn the heat down to low and leave to simmer for 30 – 40 minutes.
• Once the rhubarb is soft, remove the pan from the heat.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C or gas mark 4.
• Put the pecans into a nutribullet or food processor and blend.
  • The pecan is a damp nut so don’t be surprise if it goes slightly mushy, that’s perfect for this recipe.
• In the large mixing bowl add the pecans, oats, sugar, coconut oil and vanilla powder.
•  Using your fingers, mix these ingredients together.
• When the coconut oil melts into the other ingredients and the mix resembles bread crumbs, set aside.
• Pour the cooked rhubarb into the large baking dish and add the crumble mix as evenly as possible on top.
• Put into the oven for 25 – 30 minutes or until the crumble is golden brown.
• Once cooked, serve and enjoy.

Nan’s Rhubarb Crumble can be served with ice cream or yogurt and honey. As a child, my Nan would make custard to have with this dessert. Nan would use a powder custard from a company called Birds. I’m sure everyone in the UK recognises this brand. Sadly I can no longer eat this product but I have started to make my own homemade custard which is just as delicious if not more so. The recipe for Homemade Custard will be on my blog on Friday. Until then, however you decide to eat this dish, as always, enjoy.

What was your favourite dessert growing up? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like and follow me. Thank you. xxx