Apple Crumble

I have made a good number of crumbles in my time, in fact, apple crumble was the first vegan dessert I ever made back in 1992.  I find crumbles to be the perfect failproof treat to throw together as you can't really do anything wrong to them once you have an idea what proportions make a good base and a good topping. And it's easy to branch out from just apples to other berries and fruits.  Today I was in the mood for making just a really nice apple crumble, as I haven't made a plain apple one in a long time. I wanted to try something new with it, so made a very simple sauce in my NutriBullet (same, only larger version of a Magic Bullet) which I poured over the apples. I made a bit of a thicker topping than I normally do as well, to make it a bit more substantial. It turned out so well the "recipe" was worth keeping.

NOTE!!  As with many of my recipes, there are no exact proportions here, except for the topping, and even with this there's room to play around. Crumbles are not science, they'll turn out tasty pretty much whatever you do to them.

Dish Size: I use a corning-ware-style lasagna dish as anything smaller just doesn't last long enough in my house for the effort I put in. I figure if it's too much I can always freeze some.

Base:

• about a dozen small to medium sized apples, ones that are slightly tart work better
• 1/4 plus 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch or suitable replacement
• small amount lemon juice
• a few dashes cinnamon

Topping:

• 1 1/4 cup rolled oats (not quick oats)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1/3 cup walnut pieces
• 1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon light oil of your choice
• 1 tsp maple or almond extract (optional)
• a few dashes salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Take four of the large apples, core and cut into chunks, put into NutriBullet (blender works fine too). Add the corn starch, maple syrup and vanilla extract and water and blend until smooth. (I never bother peeling the apples, btw)

Core the remaining apples and cut into small cubes, placing in a large bowl and tossing with a bit of lemon juice to prevent browning, then a few dashes cinnamon. Transfer to baking dish. 

Pour the blended mixture evenly overtop of the apples.

In a large bowl combine all the dry topping ingredients. Using a fork slowly drizzle in the oil while stirring until you have a crumbly consistency that's no longer dry, but not wet either.  Press this mixture firmly overtop of the apples, patting down so it's all nice and even.  

Place in oven and bake 35 min.