Spiced Pear and Pecan Crumble with ‘Caramel’ Sauce
By OcadoLife
Published on 05 January 2023
This warming Spiced Pear and Pecan Crumble with ‘Caramel’ Sauce, from nutritionist and food writer Nena Foster, is a next-level vegan pud. It celebrates seasonal pears in style, matching them with a crunchy topping of oats, nuts and seeds, and a plant-based ‘caramel’ sauce made with medjool dates and coconut cream.Time and servings
45 minsTotal time
6Servings
15 minsPrep time
30 minsCooking time
Ingredients
- 75 g of jumbo oats
- 50 g of plain, gluten-free or rice flour
- 75 g of cold vegan butter, cubed
- 0.75 tsp of ground ginger
- 0.5 tsp of ground turmeric
- 1.5 tsp of ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp of golden caster sugar
- 50 g of pecans, finely chopped
- 40 g of pumpkin seeds, chopped
- 7 pears (approx. 800g), cored and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2.5 tsp of vanilla extract
- 8 medjool dates (approx. 150g), pitted and chopped
- 50 ml of coconut cream
- 6 dollops of dairy-free yoghurt, to serve
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. For the topping, put the oats, flour and butter in a mixing bowl and rub with your fingertips until it clumps together. Add ½ tsp each of ground ginger, ground turmeric and ground cinnamon, the sugar, nuts and seeds and give it a good mix.Step 2
For the filling, toss the pears in a bowl with the remaining ground cinnamon and ground ginger, 1 tsp of the vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Tip into a 22cm baking dish and spread out in an even layer; spoon over the topping. Bake for 30-35 mins, until golden on top.Step 3
Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the dates in a heatproof bowl and cover with just-boiled water; set aside to soak and soften for 5-10 mins. Leave to cool a little.Step 4
In a blender, whizz the soaked dates and 100ml of the soaking water with the coconut cream, the remaining vanilla extract and a pinch of salt, until smooth. Tip into a saucepan, ready to reheat before serving.Step 5
Serve the crumble in bowls with a drizzle of the warm sauce and a dollop of yoghurt.