A crumble is one the recipes that is a good thing to have in the easy-to-grab drawer. It is super easy and pretty amenable to whatever fruit filling you have on hand and even any flour you have handy.
For this one, I used strawberries that I had picked and frozen last year, around this time. Ah yes, a full year after I had made Winter plans. LOL. Oh, how I underestimated the impact of Tiny Feet in my life. :-) In June last year, when I was picking these plump, ripe berries off the vine, I was making plans to brighten the coming Winter with Summery berry-ness. I had plans of jams. shortbreads and cakes that I would bake into gift baskets for neighbors for Christmas, you know, regular old homesteading. instead, as you can notice, from the lack of posting on the blog, I have barely managed to keep my head above water about 80% of the time. The rest, well, I drown but by sheer will of power manage to come back up for a drag of air.
Anyway, here we are. Finally, able to open the freezer and make true on plans. Better late than never eh?! :)
The crumble topping is all almond flour. I love its nuttiness and richness paired with the lightness of the fruit. I think it makes a great pairing!
Freezing Strawberries
I have always wondered how Dole gets it right. For the most part, the berries in their packages are held up pretty well. So, when I froze these berries, I followed some good advice from farmers.
1. Clean the berries and let them dry out in a colander.
2. On a large baking sheet, place the berries in lines, with a little space between them. Do no pack tight or overlap.
3. Place in freezer for 24 hours to fully freeze.
4. Transfer to freezer bags, again, not packing too much and store.
Gluten Free Strawberry Almond Crumble
1 pint of frozen/fresh strawberries
3 T chia seeds
3 T maple syrup
1/3 cup almond flour
2/3 tsp baking soda
6 T butter, softened
If using frozen berries, thaw them for half hour.
Preheat oven to 350F.
In the baking bowl, pile in the berries, drizzle over 1 teaspoon of maple syrup and sprinkle in the chia seeds. Set aside while making the crumble mix.
In a small bowl, knead together the remaining maple syrup, almond flour, soda and butter till it just comes together.
Crumble the flour mix over the berries and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top and bubbly.
Remove and cool for a few minutes before serving.
Similarly ….
STRAWBERRY RHUBARB GALETTE
STRAWBERRY GIN POPTAIL
STRAWBERRY RHUBARB CAKE