• Begin by preparing the fruits of your choice. I’m using rhubarb, apples and plums. I’ve washed them thoroughly, peeled the apples and chopped everything roughly. Set the fruit aside.
• Add 2 tablespoons of caster sugar to a large frying pan over a low heat.
• We’re making a caramel, so don’t stir the sugar at any point as this will cause the sugar to seize, crystalize and become grainy. It’s best to just shake the pan gently every so often to allow the sugar to settle in a nice, even layer. That way, the sugar melts and caramelises at a similar rate.
• Once the sugar starts to melt, add the final tablespoon of caster sugar, taking care not to stir it in.
• Melted sugar can go from clear to amber to burnt very quickly, so err on the side of caution. And keep in mind, melted sugar is very hot, so never touch with your hands and keep away from children.
• As the sugar becomes amber in colour, add the agave nectar or maple syrup and drop in the fruit. The caramel might clump a bit under the fruit, but don’t worry, keep stirring and the caramel should soon melt again and become reincorporated.
• Cook the fruit for 5-10 minutes. The cooking time will vary as it depends on the fruit that you’re using.
• Sometimes I don’t bother to pre-cook the fruit and just top it immediately with the crumble layer. While this is largely successful with berries (as they’re soft), you might find that more fibrous fruits, such as apples, plums or rhubarb, simply won’t cook properly beneath the crumble. Queue many disappointed diners...! So, we pre-cook to ensure the fruit is completely soft and we reduce it down in the pan into a fragrant and sweet jam-like mixture.

For the Crumble

• Using clean hands, rub together with your fingers the flour, sugar and margarine into a crumble. The mixture should resemble breadcrumbs.
• Add the oats and stir to combine. To help aerate the crumble, use your hands to dig into the crumble and lift the mixture up. Then let it fall through your fingers. Keep doing this to add more air into the crumble and create a lighter crumb.
• Pour the fruit into a baking dish (no need to grease) and use a spoon to level out the mixture evenly.
• Drizzle extra maple syrup or agave nectar over the fruit.
• Sprinkle over the nutmeg and then the lemon zest.
• Pour roughly half of the crumble over the fruit mixture and spread it out evenly.
• Sprinkle an extra pinch of sugar over the crumble and top with the remaining crumble. Spread evenly over the top. You don’t want to make it compact, so don’t pat the crumble down, just lightly spread it out.
• Bake at 180°C/350°F for 22-25 minutes.
• Serve and enjoy!