My Virgin Kitchen

The kids absolutely love making crumbles as they can get involved at nearly every step. This recipe has a simple porridge oat topping that complements the fruit really well. Feel free to mix around the fruit in here; the girls love picking blackberries near our house so this has become a favourite.

250g blueberries, washed

250g blackberries, washed

50g caster sugar, plus 1 tbsp for sprinkling

100g plain flour

50g porridge oats

100g butter, cut into cubes

custard or ice cream, to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/Gas mark 4.

2. Put the fruit into a bowl, sprinkle with a tablespoon of caster sugar and gently stir with a spatula – don’t disturb the fruit too much, just make sure it is evenly coated. Tip into a baking dish.

3. Put the sugar, flour, oats and butter into a clean bowl. Use your fingers and thumbs to rub the butter into the sugar, oats and flour – this will take a couple of minutes – until the texture is fine and you can no longer feel the butter. Scatter the topping over the fruit, making sure it is fully covered.

4. Bake in the oven for 50 minutes, or until brown on top. It will be very hot when you take it out of the oven so be careful and allow it to cool for a few minutes before serving. Enjoy hot or warm with custard or ice cream.

VIRGIN TIP

It’s quite nice to add spices or other fruits to this recipe for an autumnal vibe. Adding apple slices to the fruit and cinnamon to the topping can give the dish a whole new dimension.