This tasty Blackberry and Apple Crumble will become your go-to dessert! So easy to make, this apple blackberry crisp captures two incredible fruit flavors in one delicious dish.
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This delicious blackberry and apple crumble is one of those desserts that you can throw together in a flash.
You make it with fresh or frozen fruit, and I’ve even thrown in some make-ahead tips because life is busy, but dessert should never be an afterthought.
If you’re a huge crumble fan, and who isn’t, check out our Apple and Blueberry Crumble.
Ingredients
This recipe uses:
- Blackberries – fresh or frozen will work. See FAQs below on using frozen berries.
- Apples – choose a baking apple like Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, or Braeburn.
- Cornstarch
- Sugar – both white and brown
- Lemon juice
- All-purpose flour – see FAQ below on making this gluten-free.
- Butter – salted or unsalted both work and see FAQ below on making this dairy-free.
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla extract
If you have leftover fresh blackberries, use them to make Blackberry Freezer Jam, Blackberry Simple Syrup, Gluten-Free Blackberry Crisp, or Blackberry Pancake Syrup.
How to Make Blackberry Apple Crumble
*I’ll walk you through it here with some photos and tips, and you’ll also find a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post with exact measurements, etc. You can also click “jump to recipe” to skip down.
Butter a 9×13 baking dish and preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C).
Then you’re going to tackle the apples. You can peel them or leave them unpeeled – chef’s choice. I prefer to peel them, but you do you.
Slice and chop the apples into ~1/2-inch pieces. Do your best to make the sizes uniform so that everything bakes evenly.
To make fast work of this, I love using my apple peeler and corer. It also helps when canning applesauce, canning apple pie filling, dehydrating apples, making steamed apples with cinnamon, and canning apple butter.
Grab a mixing bowl and toss the apples with the blackberries, lemon juice, cornstarch, and just a bit of sugar. Pro tip: to save on dishes, IF you have a deep baking dish, go ahead and mix all this directly in the dish.
If you didn’t mix the fruit in the baking dish, go ahead and add it now. Scrape any juices and sugar over the fruit that has accumulated in the bottom of the mixing bowl.
In a microwave-safe mixing bowl, warm butter until it is about 50% melted and 50% softened. You don’t want it to be all liquid, but you also don’t want it fully solid. See the photo grid a few paragraphs below if you need a visual representation of this.
Add flour, white and brown sugars, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Stir with a fork to distribute the butter. The mixture should have some clumps and if you grab a pinch of it and make a ball, it should hold together. It should feel like buttery sand. Mmmm, buttery sand.
Top the fruit with the crumble mixture. Some clumps are ok, but break apart any overly large clumps.
Bake it uncovered for 45-50 minutes or until the crumble topping is lightly browned and the fruit is bubbling.
For best results and to prevent a tragically burned tongue, go ahead and let it cool for 15(ish) minutes before serving.
HOW TO STORE AND REHEAT
Storing Leftovers: Allow the crisp to cool and store covered leftovers at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Reheating Leftovers: Blackberry apple crumble can be enjoyed cold, at room temperature, or heated. To reheat, cover and microwave individual servings for 35 seconds.
Freezing Crumble: You can assemble the crumble and freeze it unbaked for 3-4 months, as long as you cover it tightly to prevent freezer burn. I would cover it with plastic wrap and then foil.
To freeze leftover baked crumble, transfer it to freezer-safe containers and freeze for 3-4 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, frozen blackberries would work great in this crisp!
You have two options for using frozen blackberries: 1) rinse the frozen berries in a strainer/mesh sieve until thawed, and then add them to the fruit mixture or 2) add them completely frozen and increase the cornstarch by 1 tbsp.
You can also check out our tutorial on freezing blackberries to create your own freezer stash.
You sure can! Using frozen fruit makes assembling this crumble a breeze.
Unlike thawing the blackberries, I do not recommend thawing the apples before adding them to the fruit mixture. There is too much chance that they will oxidize (brown) during the thawing process.
Instead, add them directly from the freezer and increase the cornstarch by 1.5 tsp.
You can also check out our tutorial on freezing apples to create your own freezer stash.
Absolutely! You can either sub in your favorite cup-for-cup gluten-free flour or use all old-fashioned oats.
Gluten-free flour tends to be a bit “thirsty” with liquids/fats which can result in a dry topping texture. Start with the 8 tbsp of butter listed in the recipe, but expect to add 1-2 tbsp more to achieve the same texture.
Check out our gluten-free strawberry rhubarb crisp for more information.
You bet! Sub in your favorite dairy-free butter for the butter listed in the recipe card.
To make it more economical, you could also use half plant-based butter, and half melted coconut oil.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Spoon the flour into the measuring cup instead of the ol’ “scoop and dump” method. That will pack the cup too full and will produce a dry crumble topping.
- Sustainability tip: to save money and resources, use the leftover butter wrapper to grease the baking dish.
- If you leave the peel on the apples, consider selecting apples with thinner skin such as Fuji or Braeburn. Granny Smith apple peels can be somewhat thick when baked.
- If your apples are extra sweet, you can leave out the 1/4 cup of sugar altogether. If they are extra tart, increase the sugar to 1/3 cup.
Blackberry and Apple Crumble
Ingredients
Fruit Layer
- 6 cups blackberries {~24 oz]
- 4 cups apples, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces {~5 medium apples}
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/3 cup white sugar {use 1/2 cup of the fruit isn't very sweet}
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Crumble Topping
- 8 tbsp butter
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- Lightly butter a 9×13 inch baking dish.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine blackberries, apples, cornstarch, sugar, and lemon juice. Gently stir with a silicone spatula to distribute cornstarch and sugar.6 cups blackberries, 4 cups apples, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces, 2 tbsp cornstarch, 1/3 cup white sugar, 2 tsp lemon juice
- Add the fruit mixture to the baking dish, scraping any juices and sugar over the fruit that has accumulated in the bottom of the bowl.
- In a microwave-safe mixing bowl, warm butter until it is about 50% melted and 50% warmed through.8 tbsp butter
- Add flour, white and brown sugars, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Stir with a fork to distribute the butter.1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Top fruit with crumble mixture. Some clumps are ok, but break apart any large clumps.
- Bake, uncovered for 45-50 minutes or until the crumble topping is lightly browned and the fruit mixture is bubbling.
- Cool for 10-15 minutes and serve.
Notes
- Spoon the flour into the measuring cup instead of the ol’ “scoop and dump” method. That will pack the cup too full and will produce a dry crumble topping.
- If your apples are extra sweet, you can leave out the 1/4 cup of sugar altogether. If they are extra tart, increase the sugar to 1/3 cup.
- Gluten-free option: either sub in your favorite cup-for-cup gluten-free flour or use all old-fashioned oats.
- Dairy-free option: sub in your favorite dairy-free butter or use half plant-based butter and half melted coconut oil.
- Storing Leftovers: Allow the crisp to cool and store covered leftovers at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
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