Celebrate the May Bank Holiday with a Seasonal Crumble!

We don’t know about you, but the Bank Holiday weekend is something we really look forward to. It’s the perfect opportunity for family, friends, great food and spending time together.

Have you thought about what to cook for your loved one, or are you in charge of ‘bringing a dish’ this Bank Holiday? If so, then this week’s blog is full of tasty inspiration!

Eating in Season

We’ve been thinking lately about eating food that’s in season, as it’s a simple way to help the environment; it supports British farmers and reduces your carbon footprint on the world. It’s not just the environment that can benefit, your tastes buds will love it too! Food that’s in season often tastes better, is fresher, typically has a higher nutritional value and can work out cheaper, so it has a multitude of benefits.

Here’s our suggestion for the perfect seasonal Bank Holiday pudding:

Rhubarb Crumble

All the ingredients for a crumble are typically already in your kitchen, apart from the rhubarb which we recommend getting from Chegworth Valley Farm Shop. The Farm Shop sells seasonal fruit, vegetables and salads sourced directly from the family farm only 30 miles away.

So, why not step away from the traditional ‘apple’ crumble and opt for rhubarb? Rhubarb is such a treat, it’s sweet but tart all at the same time!

Tips

• Rhubarb tends to shrink a little when cooked, so don’t be afraid to pile it up high in your baking dish
• For the perfect crunchy crumble topping, keep your butter cold and keep the crumble loose when covering, rather than pressing it down onto the rhubarb.

BBC Good Food: Rhubarb Crumble Recipe

Ingredients

• 500g rhubarb, chopped into chunks the length of your thumb
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 3 tbsp port (optional)

For the crumble topping

• 140g self-raising flour
• 2 tbsp of oats (optional)
• 85g butter chilled
• 50g light brown muscovado sugar
• 50g chopped walnuts (optional)

Serve with custard or vanilla ice cream

Method

Tip the rhubarb into a saucepan with the sugar and port, if using. Cover and simmer on a very low heat for 15 mins, adding more sugar if desired. When soft (but still holding its shape) and sweet enough, pour the rhubarb into a medium baking dish.

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6. To make the topping, rub the flour and butter together with your fingers until you have a soft, crumbly topping. Now add the sugar and nuts, mixing together with your hands.

Scatter the topping over the rhubarb and bake for 30 mins or until golden brown on top. Serve piping hot with a big jug of thick vanilla custard or ice cream.

Crumble Cookware and Components

Trevor Mottram

A longstanding part of The Pantiles, the shop is a domestic goddess or god’s dream! Stocking iconic household brands such as Le Creuset, their cast iron pans are perfect for your rhubarb crumble from start to finish; from making the rhubarb compote on the stove, to baking the crumble and serving it to your guests.

Chegworth Valley Farm Shop

Source all your delicious ingredients for your Bank Holiday lunch from Chegworth Valley Farm Shop at The Pantiles! Not only does the farm shop stock ingedients for your crumble, they also sell local organic and specialised meats, dairy, bread and more.

Perfect for serving up a great lunch with local sustainable high-quality ingredients. We also recommend trying their award-winning farm pressed juice and their new seasonal salad leaves.

Head to The Pantiles this week and pick up all you need to cook up a crumble feast for the whole family!