I Tried Mary Berry's Apple Crumble Secret And My Family Couldn't Get Enough Of It

I will admit it; I thought Nigella Lawson made the best crumble topping until just about last week. 

But I have been wrong before (I turned my back on Paul Hollywood’s focaccia after trying a no-knead overnight recipe, and even learned to take Gordon Ramsay’s carrot cake advice with a grain of salt); and I was wrong again. 

Following my most recent Sunday roast, I thought I’d give Mary Berry’s crumble recipe a try.

The dessert did not last 15 minutes; friend after family member scraped every last morsel from its inevitably too-small earthenware home.

How does Mary Berry make her apple crumble?

The former Great British Bake-Off judge keeps it reassuringly simple: plain flour, demerara sugar, and cubed butter make up the crumble topping, while the base contains only cooking apples, butter, and sugar. 

But the chef added a step I had never seen, or used, before ― she cools the apple base completely before adding the crumble on top.

That way, the butter in the crumble does not melt, creating that slimy gooey-ness which is fine (and even welcome) in small quantities, but which can ruin a crumble layer of the thickness I prefer. 

Previously, I used Nigella’s baking powder trick to keep my metres of crumble sog-free. 

But Mary’s suggestion worked even better; the topping retained its buttery flavour and thick, satisfying crumb without some of the fall-apart fluff a leavening agent can bring.

That’s not her only hack 

The Cordon Bleu-trained chef also adds a sprinkling of demerara sugar to the very top of the crumble. 

That cooks into a thin, slightly crisp layer, which is delicious against the shortbread-like crumble; I could not get enough of it.

The best part? Mary says the highly-rated recipe can be made up to six hours ahead (perfect for dinner parties ― just double check you still follow the “cool apple” rule). 

The only change I would make is adding a little cinnamon and ginger to the base of the crumble. Aside from tasting amazing, it makes your kitchen smell divine; in fact, the aroma might linger longer than the dessert.