Borough Market Apple and Rhubarb Crumble

Before heading off to Berlin I spent a few days with some family friends just out of London. Being a bit of a market fiend, I was keen to visit Borough Markets, which I had heard a lot of good things about. It is a really lovely market, though fairly pricey. Cheese is dominant, with far more varieties than you'll ever see in Aus. There were also quite a few different choices of bread, and a wide range of deli meats. The fruit and veg selection was a little disappointing, though beautifully displayed. I also find it quite unnerving that so much comes from outside the UK; bananas from South Africa, apples from Spain, lemons from Italy. I'm not sure of the reason for this, price and climate, I imagine, play a role. I wonder if it is even possible to buy seasonal,  local fruit and veg and not starve in the UK? I should't be too judgmental, though, The UK is a lot smaller and does not have the same range of climates as does Australia. 

Wanting to cook something for my hosts, I picked up some (what seemed to be) local rhubarb and cooking apples to make a crumble. I also got some lovely clotted jersey cream and a slab of unsalted butter. I ended up blending a few recipes and improvising a little as I went. I was fairly happy with the result, but unfortunately forgot to take a picture. I will definitely go back to Borough Market when I am in London next, if only for the insanely good grilled cheese sandwich and equally satisfying Monmouth coffee I had for sustenance. 

Ingredients:

800g (give or take) rhubarb

2 large cooking apples

1/4 cup caster sugar plus 1 tbsp

4 cloves 

For the crumble:

130g unsalted butter, chopped and chilled

150g self-raising flour

130g dark brown sugar 

40g oats

60g ground almonds 

1/2 tsp cinnamon 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 190*C. Chop the rhubarb into 4cm lengths. Peel and dice the apple. Place the rhubarb on an oven tray lined with baking paper and sprinkle over the 1/4 cup of caster sugar. Bake for 15 minutes or so, until tender. Place the apple in a saucepan, add the sugar, cloves and a little water. Simmer over a low-medium heat until tender. 

For the crumble, add the butter to the flour and rub in with you fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the brown sugar, oats, ground almonds and cinnamon. Set aside until needed. 

Spoon the rhubarb and apple into a baking dish and cover with the crumble mixture. Place in the oven and cook for 30 minutes or until the crumble is nice and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes or so. Serve with clotted cream or ice cream.  

Serves 6