[Rachel]

This is partly inspired by Georgia's 'winter salad doldrums' post of a few weeks ago... this being the time of year when the fruit situation is just as grim, and it gets harder and harder to appreciate apples and pears! I can't claim that this crumble is entirely original - it started life as the Crumble aux Fruits d'Hiver in Crumbles by Camille Le Foll, took on a few characteristics of Alastair Little's Winter Fruit Compote and then I added a few twists of my own. It's certainly a good way to perk up pears, though, and the topping is virtuous enough that I don't feel too bad eating the leftovers for breakfast... not that I'd do that every week.

Winter Fruit Crumble

1 jasmine or lapsang souchong teabag, or 2 tsp loose tea
2 heaped tbsp sugar
100g prunes
100g dried apricots (preferably unsulfured)
3 medium pears (a variety that keeps its shape when cooked, e.g. Conference or Concorde)
80g raisins or sultanas
powdered ginger and freshly grated nutmeg to taste

180g wholemeal flour
80g unsalted butter, chilled and diced
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
60g brown sugar
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

The night before: brew 1 litre of tea in a large heatproof bowl and sweeten with the sugar. (Don't omit the sugar, otherwise the fruits' natural sugar will leach out and you'll end up with a bland crumble.) Soak the prunes, apricots and raisins/sultanas in the tea overnight.

The next day: drain the fruit, reserving about 3 tbsp soaking liquid. Cut the prunes and apricots in half and arrange the fruit in a baking dish, with the reserved liquid poured over. Peel, core and slice the pears and add them, along with a sprinkling of ginger and nutmeg.

Make the topping by mixing all the remaining ingredients together with your fingertips, until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the fruit, and bake in a preheated 180C oven for about 30 minutes.

Serve warm with Greek yogurt or fromage blanc. See? Winter doesn't have to be so bad!

[srk]

Ooh - that sounds good, almost savory. Sesame is a little unusual in a fruit tart.

[Rainey]

What an interesting concept to rehydrate fruit with tea!
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[David]

Rachel, i love this idea---I'm looking forward to trying it some time over the next month!
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Vivant Linguae Mortuae!!

[David]

Well it was lovely Rachel---ate it with vanilla ice cream. Will make it again and plan to toss in a handful of sweetened dried cranberries for a bit more sweetness and extra colour (and also because I have a HUGE bag of them!) Was impressed with how much the dried fruits do plump up with the rehydrating.
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Vivant Linguae Mortuae!!

[Rachel]

David, I'm so glad you liked it! Let me know how it turns out with dried cranberries... I may have to try that myself next time. They're not so common on this side of the pond, but that's not to say they can't be found!