Summer Fruit Crumble

It’s a summer of firsts for me. My first summer in the U.S. in a decade. My first summer not in Italy in a decade. My first summer working (at a not-summer-job job). My first summer not traveling. My first summer in many years not married, and my first summer without Stella.

 

Transitions are hard, people say. It takes time.

 

I know. I’ve been told. If I was to believe what they say, I’d know I’ll be fine.

 

I thought I’d find comfort in those delicious unchangeables: afternoon thunderstorms, Boston accents, tree frogs, summer fruit, the muffled buzz of my parents’ radio a floor below. But those things don’t feel the same when I don’t feel myself.

 

I’m both unable to write about this eloquently and unsure if I want to.

This summertime sadness will pass, just like they say, and I’ll figure out who I am, was and will be. For now, I look for comfort in things that I know, and in the people who know me.

Some of the things they tell me is that I like stone fruit, I like to bake, and I like to have dinners outside with lost count wine bottles, a mash up of accents and no sense of time.

So I’m trying. I pit cherries, I melt butter. I try to stay up even when all I want to do is sleep because there’s a chance, however heartbreakingly small, that when I wake up, it will all have been a dream.

Despite the depressing words above, this is truly a delicious and easy summer dessert, adapted from this blog. Serves 8 – 10. Can be adapted to use up whatever fruit you’d like. I used about 6 plums, 1 peach, 1 cup cherries (pitted) and 1 cup blueberries. Serve warm with barely sweetened whipped cream or mascarpone. Can be refrigerated and reheated.

FRUIT

A mix of ripe stone fruit (e.g. plums, peaches, cherries) and berries (I used blueberries), in large chunks

1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)

1 1/2 tablespoons flour

juice of 1/4 lemon (optional)

CRUMBLE

1 cup flour

2/3 cup sugar (or to taste)

1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder

pinch salt

1 egg, beaten lightly

6 tablespoons (1/2 cup; 115 grams) butter, melted

 

Preheat oven to 375F/190C.

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients under the “FRUIT” heading.

In another large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add in the beaten egg, and mix with a fork or your hands until it begins to get clumpy. You can add some ground cinnamon, allspice, clove and/or nutmeg, too.

Spread the fruit in a large casserole or pie dish and spread the flour mixture evenly on top. Now pour the melted butter over evenly and bake for around 40 – 45 minutes, or until the crumble is golden brown and bubbling.

You can make the crumble a few days ahead – just keep it in the fridge and reheat at 300F/150C to serve warm.

Serve warm with ice cream, mascarpone or creme fraiche.