Blackberry Crumble (Healthy)

This blackberry crumble is a delicious and easy way to enjoy summer fruit. It’s low in sugar, high in fibre, perfect to enjoy for breakfast, weekend brunch or as a healthier dessert. Preparation takes just minutes!

Making fruit crumbles is the easiest way to use up summer fruit especially if you love to pick it yourself. Because you will end up with a lot of it! Blackberries are some of the easiest fruits to find as they simply grow everywhere. They are sweeter than store-bought and don’t cost a penny.  So it’s easy to get carried away and pick a little too many.

But that’s not necessary a bad thing since blackberries are incredibly nutritious, packed with fibre, vitamins and delicious flavour. Perfect to enjoy in a breakfast crumble.

Blackberry crumble ingredients

The filling consists of blackberries, 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.

For the crumble topping I chose a mixture of old-fashioned oats, whole wheat flour, nutritious flaxseed, a small amount of light brown sugar, cinnamon for more flavour and butter to keep it all together and create a crispy crumble.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1.Preheat the oven to 375 F/ 190 C/ gas mark 5. Place the blackberries in a medium size oven dish and sprinkle with the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Stir thoroughly and set aside.

2. To the food processor add the flour, oats, remaining sugar, butter, flaxseed and cinnamon.

3. Pulse until well incorporated (no dry ingredients visible), crumbly with small and large granola-like clusters.

4. Crumble the mixture over the blackberries (without pressing down) and bake in the centre of the oven for 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven, set aside for 5 minutes and serve.

Do I have to make the crumble topping in the food processor

No, you don’t.  You can mix all the topping ingredients by hand using your fingertips to rub the ingredients together until crumbly.  The drawback of not using a food processor is that it takes longer to ensure all the ingredients have been thoroughly incorporated and the flour is no longer visible. 

Top tips and FAQs

• Make ahead: you can prepare the crumble in advance, refrigerate overnight and bake the next day.
• When making the crumble topping (whether in the food processor or by hand) mix the ingredients thoroughly until the dry ingredients are no longer visible.
• If you use unsalted butter add a good pinch of fine sea salt into your crumble mixture.
• If you pick your own blackberries it’s best to use them as quickly as possible, ideally the same day. Don’t forget to rinse them thoroughly.
• Best served immediately. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.
• You can freeze the crumble (uncooked), covered with plastic wrap, for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen until golden.

Substitutions

• Light brown sugar: I used this sugar for its delicious caramel flavour but demerara, muscovado or coconut sugar would work well too.
• Flaxseed: Use crushed nuts, almond flakes, chia seeds or sunflower seeds instead.
• Oats: While I do not recommend using instant oats, barley as well as rye oats are good alternatives to old-fashioned oats.
• Butter: If you would like to enjoy this blackberry crumble vegan use coconut oil instead (refrigerate it beforehand to ensure it’s set, not runny).
• Cinnamon: You could use pumpkin spice or ground ginger instead or simply omit the spice.

Serving suggestions

If you are serving this crumble as a breakfast dish enjoy it with low fat yogurt (plain or flavoured) or add a dollop of ricotta cheese.  For a dessert idea enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or topped with whipped cream.  

What else can you do with blackberries

Another easy recipe idea is turning your blackberries into either a blackberry sauce or fruit compote. You can either use blackberries on their own or combine them with other berries. You can also make a delicious blackberry coffee cake with a crumble topping, perfect to enjoy with a cup of tea or coffee.

One idea that takes me back to my childhood is eating freshly picked blackberries with a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream and a little sugar. It’s simple, delicious and perfect as a snack or summer dessert.

You might also like

• Simple Peach Blueberry Crumble
• Cherry Crumble Recipe with Almonds
• Healthy Apple Crumble with Walnuts and Ginger
• Blueberry Oatmeal Breakfast Bars (Vegan)
• Healthy Vegan Plum Crumble with Oats

Check out also this collection of 18 healthy, easy vegetable breakfast recipes.

Keep in touch!

If you give this blackberry crumble recipe a go I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Did you make any substitutions? Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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