I really enjoyed making these adorable little Gluten Free Blackberry Crumble Fool individual desserts for various reasons. Firstly they are super quick and simple to make and can easily be adapted to be gluten-filled, gluten free and dairy free too. In fact, I’ve made something very similar recently with another seasonal fruit the humble gooseberry, and you can see my recipe for Gooseberry Crumble Fool if you click the link.
Secondly, and more importantly, they’re made from free blackberries, you know the kind, the ones you pick from a hedgerow and not from a market shelf. On this occasion it was thanks to Bethany and Lewis that I had this bumper crop as they’d both set off down our street to a huge bramble that bares fruit each year and this year is no exception, I swear they’re the biggest I’ve seen from this bramble.
Thirdly and for me the most important, they’re proudly presented in four cute little dessert dishes that I ‘borrowed’ from my Gran and Grandpa today. It went like this;
“Gran, Grandpa, I was just putting some glasses away and saw these at the back of your cupboard, can I borrow them for a recipe and photoshoot I have in mind?”
“Yes of course you can darling, help yourself” translated that means “they’re yours darling, we’re not going to need them”.
Grandpa is not a very well man bless him, the bastard cancer, that he’s been beating for two decades that was not meant to end his days, seems to be gearing up for a sprint finish. Every moment is precious and there are micro memories I’m making every day so this recipe and photo are now eternal reminders of the day I spent with my darling grandparents.
Let’s move on to the Blackberry Crumble Fool shall we?
The idea behind this is actually me solving the issue that there are no fruit corners out there that are gluten and dairy free (do you hear me Muller?) I used to love both the fruit corners and crunch corners and now neither are available to me or Bethany, in fact, I distinctly remember having huge cravings for them when I was pregnant with Bethany a squillion years ago. Probably not enough calcium in my system, anyway, as usual I digress.
With this recipe we get the best of both worlds; fruit and crunch corners and to be fair the possibilities are endless. Hmmmmm, I have just had another recipe idea!
I actually used a packet of free from shortbread biscuits on this occasion that had gone a little soft and chewy so perfect for this type of dessert; you still get the crumble texture but the moisture of the yogurt and berries adds a delicious chew too. How I do love chewiness to certain gooey biscuits or those chewy bits you’re sometimes lucky enough to get in a meringue nest. There I go again, oh well, here’s the recipe my dears.
Such a simple little dessert to whip up in no time at all, the perfect match for seasonal fruits of all kinds and easily adapted to be gluten free, dairy free, vegan or not, your choice!
- 100 g blackberries
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tsp arrowroot
- 100 g yogurt I used Alpro natural yogurt
- 50 g blackberries
- 8 shortbread biscuits I used Sainsbry's Free From on this occasion
To make the fruit puree simply weight the fruit and sugar into a jug or small saucepan, then heat until fruit has broken down. I use a jug and pop it into the microwave for 30 seconds (900W)
Remove the jug or pan from the heat and quickly stir in the arrowroot this will prevent lumps.
Spoon the puree into your dishes and set aside to cool to room temperature, a delicate film will set on the surface.
In a bowl measure out the yogurt and blackberries and stir to combine, how much you stir is totally up to you; less will result in a rippled effect, more will turn the yogurt a beautiful purple.
Spoon the yogurt gently onto the puree, I tend to work my way around the edge then into the middle, this way the puree wont rise up the side of the dish leading to a less obvious layered effect.
The crumble topping is a easy as pie..or crumble. Crush the shortbread in a bag and sprinkle over the tops of each dessert.
Chill for 30 minutes and enjoy as a light dessert or a cheeky supper treat.
Alternative fruits can be use like my Gooseberry Fool Crumble or what ever fruits are in season (fruit that doesn't discolour and breaks down easily once heated is preferable)
And one last thing! I’ve linked my Blackberry Crumble Fool with these other awesome bloggers pages, go check them out
Cook Blog Share | Free From Fridays | Brilliant Blog Posts | Baking Crumbs | Recipe of the Week | Got 2 be Gluten Free| That Friday Linky | Blog Crush
I’ll be there in an hour… or two! OH. MY these look amazing, fresh foraged produce, crumbly biscuits and yummy yoghurt – yes please! Bet they would be great out the freezer too!
#cookblogshare
These look great. I also love the look of the glasses too. Sorry to hear about your grandfather though.
Thank you Anca, and thank you. Such a cruel indiscriminate disease, it makes you evaluate the important things in life xx
These look delicious and such a lovely recipe to make with berries that you’ve foraged yourself. We are loving picking blackberries at the moment – It’s just a shame the season is so short! I’m so sorry to hear about your grandfather. Cancer is such a horrible disease.
Such a lovely, delicious retro treat and I love how it has now got an emotional connection with your grandparents too! So sorry to read about your grandfather Rebecca and sending you lots of love. Thank you for sharing with #BakingCrumbs xx
Thank you Jo, love received xxx
What a fabulous dessert Rebecca – and with a scrummy free element too! Those blackberry bushes have been soooo generous this year haven’t they and they still some how seem to keep giving! I’m so sorry to hear about your Grandfather Rebecca – sending love xx
Thankyou for linking up with #BakingCrumbs,
Angela xx
Aww, these make me kinda sad. Sad because they look so lovely but this year I did not get any free blackberries, or “brambles”. I know of several spots in London where I can harvest them but this year did not make it out in the goldilocks window, sometime July/August, to do so. By the time I did go out in August there was only evidence of what I had missed out on!
My back garden grown tomatoes and kumquats are offering me solace :-)
Well now Benjamin, kumquats are very exciting, I can’t remember the last time I saw those in the shops. I look forward to seeing what you do with them 😊