Chunky Blackberry & PB Crumble (by Nancy Fuller of Farmhouse Rules)
For many years, most of what I watched on TV was cooking shows. It allowed me to see ideas and test recipes that I could further develop to make my own. It’s likely you have a fav celebrity chef if you enjoy baking or cooking - if you do, let me know who in the comments! When I stumbled upon Farmhouse Rules with Nancy Fuller, I kinda fell in love with her no-nonsense approach to cooking and baking that involved gathering local ingredients that were as fresh as possible and could feed a crowd.
That local and fresh part truly is at the core of much of what I do, especially in the Summer and Fall. And she’s kinda sassy…I like her a lot for that.
I once read that cooking shows were chefs who’d sold out to commercialism and dumbed down their recipes for the common people - thank you Anthony Bourdain for said commentary… may God rest your soul. While there may be some truth to that, there is also incredible truth that sometimes simple is very delicious because certain flavors are allowed to shine. This recipe falls into that simple category: basic ingredients, easy concept, nostalgic idea, and super easy to make. The berries shine in their flavor, and the crumble topping is familiar yet, new in a nostalgic way.
While fresh berries in the summer would work best, this is equally as delish with frozen berries, which are typically picked and flash frozen within hours of picking. I typically make this with frozen blackberries if the fresh ones don’t look great. It’s delish either way. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
6 cups fresh or frozen blackberries (strawberries or blueberries or a combo would also work)
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I might also add some more complimentary spices here: cloves, ginger, some orange zest, or even a dash of black pepper. Basil and mint would also add a nice herbaceous note - play and make this your own!)
1 lemon, juiced (orange would also work)
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1/3 cup chunky peanut butter (Use chunky. The texture it adds is everything)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and place a rack in the center of the oven.
Place the berries in a 12-inch high-sided skillet or braiser set over medium heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the flour, 1/4 cup of the sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of the cinnamon and the lemon juice. Cook until all the juices release, [about] 5 minutes.
To make the crumble topping, in a medium bowl combine the oats, peanut butter, brown sugar, the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar and the remaining 3/4 cup flour. Mix with a spoon until combined. Pour the butter into the dry crumble mixture and stir to achieve a crumble consistency. Spoon dollops of the crumble mixture over the berry mixture. Bake until the topping is crisp, 20 minutes. Cool the crumble for 5 minutes, then serve.
**Notes: I did this in a cast iron pan on the grill. Be careful when you do this, as you want to serve the crumble right away and get it out of the cast iron pan so the metallic taste doesn’t settle into the food, itself. Also, keep a watch on the grill temp, which is more difficult to keep at a singular temperature. I pulled mine off the grill somewhere about 13-15 minutes.
