Purple Plum Crumble

purple plums baked to sweet & crunchy perfection

Growing up a common end of summer dessert that my mom made was peach cobbler. I have to admit, I'm not a big fan of cobbler, but I loved the sweet soft fruit underneath the bread topping. I'm sure I'll post her cobbler recipe on here at some point, but I actually prefer a crumble...so that's what I've made.

The main difference I notice between a crumble and a cobbler is the crunch factor. My crumble has oats to provide that nice texture. Other crumbles have nuts in them...feel free to add some to this recipe too. The fruit gets nice and soft when baked, so having a crunchy topping is perfection. I round this dessert out with ice cream. It really is a must! Make this when you need an easy, well-rounded dessert. Here's how...

Ingredients
7-8 Purple Plums
1/2 Lemon or Lime, juiced
1T Granulated Sugar
1C Quick Cooking Oats
4T Flour
1/2C Lightly Packed Brown Sugar
6T Softened Butter
1/2tsp. Cinnamon
1/4tsp. Nutmeg
Pinch of Salt
Vanilla Ice Cream for Serving

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Begin by preparing the plums: cut the plums in half and pit. Line the bottom of a 1.5 quart baking dish with the plums, cut-side up. Feel free to cut the plums to fit in as many as you need to cover the bottom. Squeeze the lemon/lime juice over the plums and sprinkle with the granulated sugar.

Next make the crumble topping: in a medium bowl combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Cut the butter in with a fork or your fingers. Be sure to work everything into a fine crumble.

Spread the crumble topping evenly over the plums and bake for about 50 minutes, or until warm and bubbly. Allow the crumble to rest for about 10 minutes before serving. You can also serve this at room temperature, if desired.

Serve with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Enjoy!