This week we have had the excitement of eating the first of this year’s veg from the garden – beetroot leaves and lettuce, in a big salad with chicken and bacon, served with Jersey Royals. There’s been quite a lot going on in the garden: the bamboo wigwams have been erected for the beans and peas to scramble up and the plants we’ve grown from seed are making their way out of the greenhouse and into the soil now that all risk of frost has passed…..
Although our rhubarb crop isn’t as good as usual, maybe because it’s been so dry, I have managed to make a few rhubarb crumbles. This week’s recipe is my version of a crumble we ate while staying with our friend Lynne, which Mr McGregor has decided is much better than normal crumble. The component parts are served separately, so you can organise the fruit, crumble and accompaniments (custard/ice-cream/yoghurt) in any order, hence the ‘Jumbled Crumble’.
Lynne is also partly responsible for this blog. Mr McGregor has been saying for some time that I should share my recipes but I wasn’t really sure how to do it. I discussed this with Lynne while we were out on a walk and she suggested I write a blog. Within a week I had created sweet enough bakes. In retrospect this shouldn’t have been a surprise, as amongst many other things, Lynne is a Professional Coach, with a focus on supporting women. Given that I went from articulating vague ideas to producing a blog within a week without even realising I’d been coached, I’d heartily recommend her! You can check out her website to find out more here. Lynne also gave me Tara Mohr’s book ‘Playing Big’. I’m not generally a fan of self-help books – I usually find them difficult to read and a bit dull. But I really enjoyed this one and have found it very useful. There are lots of sections in it where I thought ‘yes, that’s me’ and I’ve learnt quite a few useful tips to use at work. It’s well worth a read.
So, now for the recipe – for the crumble bit of jumbled crumble – I guess it is a bit like Granola (but with less sugar). Try serving it with whatever stewed fruit you like (warm or cold) or perhaps with ice-cream. I can guarantee it keeps for at least a week in a sealed container. It might keep longer than that, but we’ve not been able to leave it that long. You could also add chopped nuts, dried fruit etc. if you like. You can download a pdf here: Jumbled crumble
Jumbled crumble
150g butter
150g plain flour
150g jumbo oats
sunflower seeds
pumpkin seeds
runny honey
- Pre-heat oven to 180°C
- Mix butter and plain flour to the texture of fine breadcrumbs
- Mix in jumbo oats and a handful of seeds
- Spread in a baking tray or oven dish
- Mix in honey to make a slightly sticky mixture – I use about 1 dessertspoon
- Bake in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, stirring now and again to mix well. It is done when it gets crunchy. Use to assemble your crumble
- Cool and store in airtight container
sweet enough bakes 