An Apple a Day ....

I received a lovely basket of Bicoloured Apples as part of European Apple Day for a promotional campaign in the U.A.E .. I began to think what could I prepare with these lovely apples, of course after tasting some them myself. They were delicious and with each bite , crunchy and sweet, and each bite took me to my childhood…

As a child, I did not like apples. My favorite fruit was bananas of which I would eat a dozen a day! My sister, Suparna, would love apples and could eat them at any time. She would especially love green apples ..as they were a bit sour .

My aunt (Taiji) would prepare a special Apple Crumble for her .

Apple crumble is of British origin. It became popular during the Ssecond World Wwar, when the crumble topping became an economical alternative to pies, since pies needed expensive ingredients . The crumble topping used were breadcrumbs or oats instead of flour and sugar (flour and sugar could be added to the crumble mix). However, crumble puddings became very popular due to their simplicity.

My sister would not display her excitement, but would be silently very happy that the dessert of the day was Apple Crumble , (much to my dismay! I’d have preferred a custard with bananas!)

My sister is 3.5 years older to me and she was my support system when my parents were away for a few years when we were young. She was the eldest all of us (we were 4 of us!) so I looked up to her for everything. Since my nursery days , I hated to go to school and tagged along instead with her to her class clutching on to her skirt, to our travels together across the Atlantic to visit my parents crossing 2 continents…never letting go!

My sister ...always with me ...

Her entire class would know that I was standing outside her class waiting for her, and all eyes would rest upon her. As embarrassed as ever, she would come out and a sense of security would rush through me and the whole world would be fine again.

But as all siblings, we had our share of fights…and the days when Apple Crumble was made, I would not be very happy as she waited for the oven to open to take the first bite of the burnt edges! It was made for her!

My Aunt would make it perfectly every time, and somehow I get the feeling that the edges were purposely burnt a bit for my sister.

Happy as ever...Apple crumble for dessert!

As I received the delicious apples, I now thought of this Apple Crumble ;the beautiful golden crust, the slightly burnt edges for my sister, the simplicity of this dish, and most importantly, the love with which it was made.

I love eating apples now, and today as I prepare the Apple crumble, it is for my sister…and I have purposely burnt an edge …just for her…

This is my Aunt’s recipe:

Apple Crumble

Ingredients:

4 apples, diced finely

1 lemon

2 ¼ cups of flour

1 ½ cups of castor sugar

100 gms salted butter

1 ½ tsp cinnamon powder

A pinch of salt

½ tsp baking soda

1 cup of chopped walnuts

To prepare:

1. Sieve the flour & mix the flour, castor sugar, salted butter, cinnamon powder, salt and baking soda in a bowl. Mix it with your fingers till it becomes soft and crumbly.

2. Line a baking dish with oil or butter.

3. Sprinkle a bit of the crumble mixture at the base. Now add the walnuts into the remaining mixture & keep aside.

4. In the baking dish lay the diced apples at the base, and pour the lemon juice mixed with 1 tablespoon of water, evenly on top of the apples.

5. Then layer the top with the crumble. Sprinkle a little butter or oil on top of the crumble.

6. Bake in a preheated oven at 250 deg for around 40 minutes till golden brown or ‘Slightly Burnt’!!!!!

Apple crumble ...delicious with sweetened whipped cream

Bi colored Apples are of many varieties: Gala, Red Jonaprince, Golden delicious, Idared, Champion, Ligol, Jonagored ,Najdared and Gloster .

The variety of European apples will satisfy the diverse tastes of all consumers and will give them a chance to experience new tastes. When they reach for apples grown in special regions of Europe, like Grójec, they will discover the delicate sweet & sour note created as a composition of unique climate and soil conditions and carefully developed own methods of cultivation. From their cultivation to sorting, storage and delivery, they follow very high EU standards of quality and safety.

Now available in U.A.E.