Rustic Apple Crumble Recipe
This rustic apple crumble recipe combines fresh apples with the warm flavours of cinnamon and cloves, topped with a crisp oatmeal crumble. Simple to prepare, this dish makes a stunning Thanksgiving dessert, Christmas dessert or served up pretty much any day of the week in the fall and winter months!
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Like most basic white chicks, fall is my favourite time of year. I love the crisp fall air and crunchy leaves underfoot. I love the earthy reds, oranges and browns that mix with the evergreens here in the Pacific Northwest. I love the cozy glow of candles as the nights get darker, and the warm scent of pumpkin spice that seems to infiltrate life at this time of year. And I love apples.
Ever since we moved to our old place with the big ol’ apple tree where we first started homesteading, apples have become a fall treat that we eagerly await each year. I hardly ever buy apples from the store anymore, and would rather wait until the abundance of the fall harvest to enjoy them fresh, preserve them and bake them into all sorts of goodies.
Applesauce was the very first thing I ever canned, and it’s a standby every year!
The Gravenstein apple tree at our old place has been on the property for roughly 100 years or more. A couple winters ago, the snow pack was so heavy that the largest two branches broke off the tree. The owners had the tree filled with concrete in hopes of preserving what remained. This year it rebounded and gave us lots of apples. Although not nearly as many as we got a couple years ago when the tree was three times its current size!
But I also love to enjoy apples while they’re in season, because there’s really no better time than fall to combine flavours like apple, cinnamon and cloves into all sorts of tasty treats.
By far my favourite apple recipe of all time is this humble but impressive rustic apple crumble. Aside from the time it takes to peel and slice the apples, the rest takes just minutes to prepare and less than an hour to bake to perfection.
It’s always a crowd pleaser and goes well with dinner any night of the week, or for any special occasion. It’s my go-to recipe for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner (in addition to this divine no-bake whipped pumpkin pie), and Ryan and I even shared some on our anniversary this year after doing dinner at home for the first time. (We had steak and mushrooms with beet greens and garlic out of our garden, by the way, and it was absolutely delish).
I love to bake my apple crumble in my cast iron pan, but you can also make it in a regular baking dish or pie pan. Cast iron adds a rustic feel (and adds iron!) to the dish, so if you have it, cook with it!
But the coup de grâce was definitely the rustic apple crumble skillet that we baked up with our first batch of apples from our tree this year. And it was extra special, not just because it was our 4-year anniversary (woot woot!) but also because this is our last year enjoying the fruits of that tree.
While we’re still transitioning to our new house, we’re saying goodbye to that old apple tree this year and inheriting a hazelnut tree instead! I’m absolutely LOVING our new place, but I will definitely miss the apple tree:(
Hazelnuts are getting ready to fall off the tree at our new house!
Whether you have an apple tree on your property or you buy them from the farmers market, now is the time to gather them and turn them into all sorts of yummy foods that will sustain you and your family now and in the months to come.
Whatever you do with your apples this season, be sure to put this apple crumble recipe on your fall menu. Then put on your sweater, sip a chai latte and enjoy all the comforts of the best season of the year:)
Happy fall y’all!
Rustic Apple Crumble Recipe
Ingredients
For the Filling
- 2 pounds of apples, peeled and sliced
- 1 tbsp. all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice
For the Crumble Topping
- 1 cup quick oats
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 cup butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Combine all ingredients for filling in a large mixing bowl. Stir until well-combined. Spoon filling into a baking dish, pie plate or cast iron pan.
- Combine dry ingredients for crumble topping in a mixing bowl. Stir in melted butter and mix well to combine. Crumble topping should be a little bit clumpy from the addition of the butter and just slightly moist throughout.
- Spread topping evenly over apple filling. Bake for 45-50 minutes and enjoy warm with a spoonful of vanilla ice cream:)
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* This article contains affiliate links. For more information, please read my Affiliate Disclosure. Having a home apothecary full of medicinal herbs, tinctures and infusions of all kinds is many a homesteader’s dream! In fact, as far as goals and dreams...
What does it really mean to be self-reliant?
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it really means to be “self-reliant.” We talk a lot about self-reliance (or self-sufficiency) in the homesteading community, and outwardly it may seem as if the goal of “achieving” self-reliance is what ultimately...
I recently listened to a podcast episode that featured the author and creator of 1,000 Hours Outside: A book, website and podcast about the benefits of spending time outdoors with your kids.
After a very long winter and a long, dreary spring, I was inspired to take on the challenge of getting outdoors and exploring our local area as much as possible with my daughter, especially over the summer months.
Yesterday’s adventure involved exploring a new trail and foraging for wild roses! I love doing things that are both leisurely and productive, so foraging is always a great way to spend an hour or two outdoors.
While I have foraged wild rosehips before (the berries left behind after the flowers die) this was our first time foraging for the flower petals, which can be dried and added to homemade herbal teas, bath salts, soaps and pot pourri.
If you and your family could benefit from a little more time outdoors (and let’s be real, who couldn’t?) I highly encourage you to check out @1000hoursoutside and make a commitment to get out and explore, forage, garden, adventure and play with your kids as much as possible.
Also, wild roses are in season now so take advantage and forage some while you can! It’s a great family/kid-friendly activity and a fun way to kick off summer outdoors:)
Oh, and remember to always forage responsibly and leave plenty of roses for the bees! 🌸 🐝
#foraging #wildroses #1000hoursoutside #wildandfreechildren
40 years on this Earth.
11 years together.
8 years married.
6 babies, one living, 4 in heaven and one more hopefully on the way.
20 fur (and feather) babies in our time together.
5 homes (plus a couple tents).
6 countries.
About 5,000 pounds of homegrown tomatoes, among other things;)
Too many good times to count.
Enough hardships to shape our characters.
One beautiful life together.
To my smart, talented, strong, kind, selfless, handsome amazing husband… The day I met you everything changed for the better. Sure, we’ve weathered some storms, but knowing I always have you to turn to has helped me through my darkest hours. The laughs, deep conversations, goals, dreams and unconditional love we share make each day worth living. And the family, home and life we’ve created together are more than I could have ever hoped for.
Happy 40th birthday to my one and only @thehumblehandyman. I can’t imagine doing life with anyone else. ❤️
I get emails from people all the time who say they wish they could homestead but they don’t have enough space. But even though you might not have enough space for a large garden and a milk cow (or even a flock of laying hens), there are lots of things you can do, grow and produce in a relatively small space.
An entire flock of Coturnix quail can be raised in a space the size of a storage closet. They’re a source of eggs and meat, and they’re a lot quieter than chickens too, making them ideal for small spaces and suburban or even urban lots.
In the spring issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine, contributor Mike Fitzgerald of @omnivore.culture breaks down the ins and outs of raising quail at home. In his words:
“Coturnix Quail may very well be the perfect breed of poultry. That’s a statement that could have a lot of chicken owners scoffing…
A quick exploration into the breed and the reasons are all too clear – Coturnix quail weigh a little less than half a pound, they reach sexual maturity at just 8 weeks old (you read that right), and they start laying eggs around 10 weeks old. They’re relatively easy to source, the males aren’t particularly loud, and the hens average one egg per day. That’s right: a small, quiet bird that happens to be an egg-laying machine, too.”
Learn everything you need to know about raising Coturnix quail at home, plus learn about keeping Mason bees, seed starting on a budget, how to take small steps every day to become more self-reliant wherever you are and much more in the spring issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine!
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead to login to the library and read the current issue (current subscribers) or subscribe and gain instant access to this issue as well as our entire digital library of past issues!
Or go to http://modernhomesteadingmagazine.com to subscribe or preview the current issue:)
📸 by Mike Fitzgerald
And then there were 3 😔
Despite fending off an eagle attack the other day, a sneaky raccoon got into the chicken run early this morning and took out one of our girls.
Having animals die is definitely the hardest part of homesteading, but it’s a reality of this lifestyle that everyone must come to terms with sooner or later.
While we care for our chickens and want to give them the best life possible while they’re here, we understand that they’re livestock, not pets, and that we’re not the only creatures who see them as a food source.
Luckily we have a new flock of up-and-comers who will be ready to lay in a few months. Until then, egg production around here is gonna be pretty scarce.
So this is 35…
I decided to read my horoscope today (since it’s my birthday and all). I don’t really buy into the horoscope predictions, but I do think there’s something to be said for the personality traits we’re born with when the stars are aligned just so. Here are a few snippets that I found to be almost eerily on point:
“Tauruses born on May 18 are characterized by love of freedom and independence…They possess extraordinary creative energy, and they are never without an important cause to champion. They enjoy taking risks, but only when they believe the risk really matters.
As a rule, most decided early in life what they wanted to do and are not likely to deviate from that path. Their independent spirit makes them ideally suited to careers where they are their own boss, or are at least autonomous within a larger structure.
May 18 people want to make it on their own. No matter how successful they become, they never forget their roots and may even draw upon them for inspiration.”
Every year on my birthday I reflect on where I’m at, where I’m headed and where I’ve come from, and all I can say is that each year I’m only more grateful to be living life on my own terms, doing what I love most next to the people I love more than anything else in the world.
I’ll never forget where I came from and I’ll never have any regrets, because I wouldn’t be right where I am now without all of the experiences -good, bad or otherwise- that I’ve had along the way.
I knew when I was a little girl that I wanted to be a writer and a content creator. Homesteading came a little later in life, but when I knew, I knew.
I hope to be doing what I love and sharing it with you all for the next 35 years too! (Well, actually, if I’m being honest, I’d like to retire and throw my phone in the river long before that;) But until that day comes, thanks for being here to celebrate life with me today and every day. Cheers to another turn around the sun 🍻
My daughter stayed overnight at her grandma’s last night, and this morning when I talked to my mom she said “Evelyn told me she’s never been to the doctor before.”
Proudly, I replied “no, she hasn’t, because she’s never needed to.” This is thanks in large part to the fact that we keep a well stocked natural medicine cabinet at home and do our best to treat everyday illnesses and ailments ourselves.
Having a well-stocked home apothecary (and the know-how to use herbal and natural medicine at home) is yet another important piece of the self-sufficiency puzzle, and one that we’re working on a lot right now, both in our home and in my membership program, the Society of Self-Reliance.
If herbal medicine and building a home apothecary is on your to-do list as well, I’ve got some great tips and a printable checklist of items you’ll want to start stocking up on now so you’re prepared to make all sorts of medicinal preparations in time for cold and flu season later this year.
This is also a great time to plant certain medicinal herbs so that you’ve got a personal, sustainable supply of herbal medicine at home, because who knows what supply chain issues are gonna hit next!
To help make building and stocking your home apothecary or natural medicine cabinet a little easier, I compiled a list of all the ingredients I like to keep on hand for making my own medicinal preparations, as well as a suggested list of herbs to start growing or stocking up on, and some other great resources to help you get started preparing and using your own herbal medicine at home.
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead to read the full article and download the checklist, or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/stock-a-home-apothecary/
With Easter just around the corner, why not forgo the dry, lackluster store-bought hot cross buns this year and make your own from scratch instead!
This recipe combines the warm and comforting flavours of vanilla, cinnamon nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cardamom with homemade sweetbread and raisins.
Oh, and none of those awful, hard, jujube candies that you often find in store-bought hot cross buns. (Seriously... Why the jujubes??)
As is the case with most homemade versions of things, homemade hot cross buns are about 1,000 times better than anything you'll find at the supermarket. But I'll let you be the judge! If you try the recipe (and I hope you do!) leave a review and let me know what you think:)
Recipe link in bio or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/homemade-hot-cross-buns-recipe/
Stinging nettles are one of my favourite things to forage for in early spring. They’re ready to harvest well before just about anything is ready in our garden, and they’re a superfood as well as a medicinal plant packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals including vitamins A, B, C & K, calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and iron, plus they’re super high in protein.
As a medicinal plant, nettles are a natural antihistamine and can help with season allergies, they have properties that reduce inflammation and especially joint inflammation and arthritis, they can be used to treat of urinary tract infections and enlarged prostate symptoms, the e been shown to lower blood pressure and control blood sugar and more!
Some people even swear by harvesting stinging nettles with their bare hands as the sting itself is said to help with muscle and joint pain/arthritis!
I, however, am not that brave. I definitely recommend wearing gloves, long sleeves, long pants and boots when harvesting stinging nettles! But the good news is that once you cook or dry the nettles, they no longer sting you. My favourite way to prepare them is to dry them and enjoy them as a herbal tea! But they’re good sautéed in stir fry or added to soups (in place of spinach or Kale) too. Whatever you do, just don’t put them fresh into a salad!
Stinging nettles grow wild all over North America (as well as other places), and spring is the best time to forage for them. To learn how to safely identify them, harvest them and prepare/preserve them, check out the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/harvest-and-use-stinging-nettles/
Have you ever foraged for stinging nettle before?
If you're looking to increase production in your own home garden, you know how important bees and other pollinators are to your overall yield.
Honeybees get a lot of the glory, and for good reason: It's said that honeybees alone are responsible for pollinating 80% of our fruits and vegetables! Not to mention, they make honey... Sweet, glorious, highly nutritious and DELICIOUS honey!
In this day and age of global food shortages, we need to do whatever we can to help increase food production at home and abroad, and helping honeybees is one of the best ways to do just that.
Click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/3-easy-ways-to-help-save-the-bees/ to learn what you can do at home to help save the bees, and the many, MANY reasons why it matters!
I don't know about you, but around here spring officially marks the beginning of what we call "busy season."
I always remind myself, though, that the payoff from the work we put in at this time of year is so totally worth the extra elbow grease and long hours.
The seeds we sow now will provide us with food and medicine to stock our pantry and apothecary with in the summer and fall.
The projects we start now will (hopefully) be finished and ready to serve us later in the year.
And the deep cleaning and organizing we do now in our homes will set the stage and the tone for the rest of the season.
Personally, I don't operate very well in a disorganized, messy or dirty environment. Whether I'm working or just relaxing, if my home is in disarray I feel like I can't fully concentrate on or enjoy whatever I'm doing.
For most of the year this means sticking to a daily routine of tidying up and light cleaning when necessary. But in the spring, I like to take a few days to deep clean our home so that the rest of the season runs smoother; So that when I'm in the thick of gardening and harvesting and preserving season, I'm not also contending with dirt and stains and pine needles from Christmas!
That being said, I don't like to use any commercially produced chemical cleaners, so I always make sure to keep a few natural ingredients on hand to get the job done.
Over the years I've tried a lot of store-bought "natural" cleaners, and honestly I haven't been impressed with most of them. In fact, I find some white vinegar, baking soda, dish soap, water and a few essential oils are all I really need to clean most of my house!
If the spring cleaning bug has bit you too, be sure to check out my DIY Spring Cleaning Recipes via the link in my bio. Every recipe is made with simple, natural ingredients that you probably have on hand already. I also like to add essential oils to my cleaning products for their scent and natural cleaning and disinfecting power, but you can omit them if you like:)
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/spring-cleaning-recipes/
If there's one thing we should all be doing to hedge against looming food shortages and inflation right now, it's growing some of our own food at home.
I've been preaching the many benefits of homegrown food for years now... Long before any of the madness we're currently experiencing took hold.
A couple years ago when I launched my first gardening course, I mentioned in my sales video that we were just one emergency situation away from grocery store shelves being cleared out entirely. Within two weeks of that video, the pandemic hit, and the rest is history.
The fact is, whether you're worried about shortages, the skyrocketing price of EVERYTHING, or you simply want to eat better, healthier foods free from GMOs and chemical sprays, learning how to grow even a little bit of your own organic food at home puts power and food security back in your hands.
That's exactly why I’ve teamed up with 16+ other speakers for the Backyard Vegetable Gardener's Summit: A free, 3-day online event where you can learn how to get started or get better at growing food and creating your own personal grocery store, right in your own backyard!
Here are just a few of the presentations coming up this week:
🌱 7 Ways To Maximize Space In Your Urban Garden
🌱 Creating a Personal Seed Bank
🌱 How to Generate Income From Your Garden
🌱 Easy Ways to Quickly Improve Your Garden Soil
🌱 Indoor Container Gardening
🌱 Growing Turmeric & Ginger at Home
🌱 How to Use Succession Planting for Higher Yields
And more!
Plus, don't miss my masterclass where I teach you everything you need to know to grow a BUMPER CROP OF TOMATOES in your backyard! 🍅🍅🍅
From starting your seeds to planting out and caring for your tomato plants all season long, I'll show you the exact method we use to grow hundreds of pounds of tomatoes at home for fresh eating and preserving each year.
The summit officially starts TODAY! If you haven't registered yet, click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/bvgs to save your seat and start watching and learning right away!
“When I think of self-reliance, I think of any ability to rely less on ‘the system.’”
I sat down with Ashley Constance from @dirtypawshomestead and the @alittleselfreliant podcast to talk about what it means to be self-reliant, if it’s even possible to be 100% self-reliant and why it’s a goal worth striving for even if complete and total self-reliance isn’t possible.
Be sure to check out the full interview in the latest issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine!
Subscribe @ modernhomesteadingnmagazine.com
I’d love to know, what are you currently doing to become a little (more) self-reliant? Let me know in the comments!👇
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