Nothing to grumble about in THIS crumble!

Apple crumble is one of my family’s favourite desserts, and here I have given it a healthy makeover.

The refined sugars that are present in regular crumble toppings are replaced with complex carbohydrates (oats), omega-3 fatty acids (flaxseeds), healthy fats (olive oil and coconut) and fibre (oats and flaxseeds). Although coconut sugar is still a sugar and should not be used liberally, it has a lower glycaemic index than white sugar and contains minerals, whereas white sugar contains “empty calories”, i.e. providing no nutritional benefit.

So tuck into my healthy version of this well-loved dessert – enjoy every guilt-free spoonful!

For the fruit:

2 baking apples and 2 pears (but you can use any fruit that cooks, e.g. plums, berries, peaches) a couple of squirts of lemon juice 1 tbsp coconut sugar 1 tsp cinnamon

For the topping:

1 cup porridge oats 1 tbsp milled flaxseeds 2 tbsp desiccated coconut ½cup olive oil 1 tbsp coconut sugar 1 tsp cinnamon flaked almonds (to decorate)

First peel the fruit and dice. Put the fruit in an oven proof dish and pour over lemon juice to prevent it from going brown while you prepare the topping. Stir in the coconut sugar and cinnamon into the chopped-up fruit.

In a separate bowl, put the oats, flaxseed and desiccated coconut and mix them together. Then stir the olive oil into the mixture. Add the coconut sugar and cinnamon to this, mix and spread over the fruit. Finally sprinkle some flaked almonds on top of the crumble and bake in a moderate oven 180ºc for 45 mins. You know the crumble is ready when you can stick a knife into the fruit and it is soft, and the topping is golden brown.