Can you make apple crumble the night before?

CountingPennies

So, as the title says, can you make an apple crumble the night before?

The family have requested apple crumble for desert tomorrow. I'm pretty busy in the morning, so i wondered would i be able to cook the apples and top with crumble tonight, and store it in the fridge till in the morning?

I'll be honest, i've never made apple crumble before, so some tips would be great.

Thanks in advance!

scaredy_cat

yep, make the crumble and pre-cook the apples a bit. then put in the fridge.

keep the crumble separate until you bake, as it might absorb the juice in the apples and go a bit soggy. you can put the make up crumble topping in a sandwich bag or plastic tub.

Honey_Bear

Yes, but bear a couple of things in mind. If the apples aren't cooked, they'll go brown and you don't want the crumble topping to get all soggied up. I'd suggest part-precooking the filling, and making the crumble topping and putting it in the fridge overnight to sprinkle over the filling just before you cook it. Someone else will be along with a better idea soon, no doubt. (Please don't peel the apples and leave them in water with some lemon juice. They absorb water and go really soft and horrible if you leave them in it for any length of time. )

CountingPennies

Sounds dumb... But how do i part pre-cook? Just boil them as i would? Maybe i should just make time to do it in the morning, lol

Tigsteroonie

CountingPennies wrote: »

Sounds dumb... But how do i part pre-cook? Just boil them as i would? Maybe i should just make time to do it in the morning, lol

Why not pre-make the crumble topping, but then do the apples fresh in the morning?

horsechestnut

Peel and cut up the apples, then put them into a suitable container, cover with Cling film and cook for about 10 Mins. in the microwave. Leave to cool and store in the fridge until you need them. Make the crumble and store separately in a plastic bag (or other suitable container). Sweeten the apples to taste, then assemble just before you want to cook it.

CountingPennies

Thanks for your help everyone. I'll let you all know how i get on. Lol.

WestonDave

If you happen to have any porridge oats at home swapping half of the flour for them makes for a more rustic/coarse crumble mix which in my view is preferable to the finer flour and butter mix.

CountingPennies

WestonDave wrote: »

If you happen to have any porridge oats at home swapping half of the flour for them makes for a more rustic/coarse crumble mix which in my view is preferable to the finer flour and butter mix.

Thanks for the tip. Sounds interesting. :cool:

krlyr

Yes, oats in the topping are a hit here. I follow the Hairy Biker's recipe but add a few more oats than recommended
http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/438035/Hairy-Bikers--apple-and-blackberry-crumble

I pre-cook the apples partway though, with a bit of lemon juice and some of the cinnamon and sugar from the recipe.

sonastin

Another vote here for oats in the crumble mix.

I hate making crumble so when I do it, I make a HUGE batch. I then keep it in a bag in the freezer for use whenever we fancy a crumble. I do the same with the fat/flour bit of pastry, and just add water to as much as I need when I want to make pastry.