I guess the English and Italian in me make it impossible to resist a fruit crumble. I never really understood the difference between a fruit crisp and a fruit crumble, but I do now. The difference is the oats that go into the topping. It makes the topping extra special. There’s the English. Now I’m guessing the Italian part is the plums. My grandmother always had plums in her house.

My Homemade Plum Crumble is perfect to serve when you’re hosting a dinner party. The crumb topping can be made a day in advance and stored in the fridge. Served hot, room temperature, or with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream; it’s the perfect ending to a meal.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yields: 6 servings
Equipment: 1 (9-inch) ceramic pie dish, rimmed baking sheet pan, cutting board, paring knife, pastry cutter, large mixing bowl

Ingredients for the Plum Filling:
2 pounds of large dark red plums, pits removed, cut into 8 slices per plum (6 cups of sliced plums)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of orange zest
1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons of organic apple juice

Ingredients for the Crumb (Crumble) Topping:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup of packed light brown sugar
1 pinch of kosher salt
1 cup of whole oats
16 tablespoons of butter, cold, cubed, and unsalted; reserve half for the top of the crumble
2 tablespoons of butter, unsalted, to grease the pie dish

Instructions:
Butter a baking pie dish.

In a large bowl, throw in your sliced plums. To the plums, add granulated sugar, flour, apple juice,  orange zest, and a pinch of kosher salt. Mix all this so all the plums are coated nicely. Transfer the plums to a buttered baking dish. I like my fruit crumbles to be piled high. It gives it an old-fashioned look.

In another large bowl, add the ingredients for the crumble topping. Flour, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, ground cinnamon, whole oats, and a pinch of kosher salt. Whisk all those ingredients together before adding in the cold cubes of unsalted butter. Reserve back 1/2 a stick of the butter to dot the top. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it looks like coarse meal, as shown above.

Sprinkle the crumbled topping evenly over the plums. If a little of the crumble topping slips down between the fruit, that’s fine. If some of the plums are showing through, that’s also fine. Use the reserved butter cubes to dot the top. Place a baking sheet under the pie dish, then bake for 50-60 minutes at 350°F., until the plums are tender and bubbling and the top is golden brown.  Let rest for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve hot or at room temperature. Don’t forget the ice cream!

There you have it, my Homemade Plum Crumble.

Note:
1) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.