Warming Apple and Pear Crumble

The winter is definitely starting to creep in.

The wind is whipping the leaves round the trees, the evening is beginning to darken already, and the garden is littered with apples.

So what better way to banish those winter blues than with a warming apple and pear crumble, a dollop of ice cream, and a mug of hot chocolate.

I made this delicious crumble last weekend (we have apple pie this week, but I am yet to taste that before I blog it!) and have decided it was simply too good not to share the recipe.

I used dark sugar to sweeten the sharp tang of the apples, and added some pears for a more subtle taste.

Pears are my absolute favourite fruit in crumbles, their sweet lovliness is perfect combined with the apples - add a few cloves for that warm, comforting taste.

Apple and Pear Crumble

This recipe made a crumble that served 5 hungry people!

5oz Dove's Farm Plain White Flour Blend

3oz Caster Sugar

3oz Butter

3 large apples

2 pears

2oz Dark brown sugar

4 whole cloves

1. Preheat the oven to Gas 4.
2. Add the flour, butter and caster sugar to a large mixing bowl and use your fingers to bind the mixture until it appears almost like breadcrumbs.
3. Peel and chop the apples and pears and place in the bottom of a large over-proof dish.
4. Add the brown sugar and cloves to the apples and pears and mix together so all of the fruit it coated.
5. Cover the fruit with the crumble mix and bake for around 45 minutes until the crumble is golden brown.
6. Enjoy with ice cream or a dollop of clotted cream for a real treat!