This Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble is a summer treat! With a hint of ginger and topped with a tender pistachio crumble, you’ll be making this easy recipe until the very last stone fruit of the season.
I think I’ve finally had my fill of berries and stone fruit just as January comes to a close.
Right now, they’re perfect; absolutely perfect to eat fresh by the handful, to put on top of your breakfast treats, and to bake with.
Just wait for those balmy evenings when it’s not torture to turn on the oven.
To make the most of my favourite fruit, I combined raspberries and ripe, yellow nectarines with a gingery, pistachio-studded topping to make a summer version of my favourite dessert – fruit crumble.
Why you’ll Love this Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble
- It’s a summer take on the classic fruit crumble, using seasonal ingredients.
- It’s an easy recipe and comes together quickly.
- The crumble topping is crispy but tender, flecked with pistachio pieces, and is oh so buttery and tasty.
- Any leftovers make for a truly decadent breakfast the next day.
Cook along with me
What is a Crumble?
A crumble is a traditional British dessert made from stewed fruit and a crumbly, streusel-like topping made from butter, flour, sweetener and spices. The crispy crumble topping is scattered on top of sweetened fruit, and then baked until the fruit juice thickens and bubbles and the crumble is a rich golden brown.
You can also make savoury crumbles with vegetable or meat fillings, and top it with a cheesy instead of sugary crumble.
The most common and popular crumble recipe is an apple crumble, which is perfect for autumn when different kinds of apples are both plentiful and at their best. Though rhubarb crumble is also very popular and one of the original fruit crumble fillings.
One of the earliest mentions of a fruit crumble comes from Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management, published in 1861. But it grew in popularity around the time of World War II when a lot of the ingredients used for traditional desserts and pies were scarce and expensive.
What’s the Difference between a Crumble, a Crisp and a Cobbler?
If you want to see an argument break out amongst self-professed foodies and foodie historians, ask them what the difference is between these fruit-froward desserts. You will get many different answers and beliefs, especially if they hail from different parts of the world.
Though the names for crumbles and crisps are fairly interchangeable these days, it’s believed the main difference between the two, back in the day, was the addition of oats to the streusel topping used for crisps.
Because the oats in the topping bake up crispier, get it?
The addition of nuts to the streusel topping is also heavily debated. And a crisp tends to be the American term of preference, while the British, Irish, Australians and New Zealanders all call it a crumble.
A cobbler though, now that has a recognisably different topping. It still starts with a base of stewed fruit, but it’s topped with scones or Southern flaky biscuits instead of a crumb or oat topping.
And let’s not get started with pandowdies, buckles, grunts and brown Betties!
No matter what you call it, a crumble’s a tasty dessert of fruit and a streusel topping.
Ingredients for Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble
The typical rule of thumb for a crumble is to slice up as much fruit as you need to fill your baking dish almost to the top. To fill my 25x25cm baking dish, I used:
- Nectarines. I used yellow nectarines because I prefer them and find they’re more flavourful. You can use white nectarines if you prefer, or even peaches would work well as a substitute.
- Raspberries. I used fresh raspberries because they’re in season, cheap and perfect right now. You can use frozen but remember to thaw them and get rid of any additional liquid. You can use mixed berries if that’s what you have, but the nectarine and ginger pairing is best with just raspberries.
- Sugar. For the fruit filling, use white granulated sugar. As fruit in the same punnet varies in sweetness, taste and add more sugar if needed.
- Orange zest and juice. I paired orange with the fruit and ginger flavours, but you can use lemon if that’s what you have. You may need to add a touch more sugar though, so make sure to taste.
- Corn flour. Nectarines and raspberries aren’t overly liquidy fruit, so you only need a tablespoon of corn flour to help the fruit juice thicken as it bakes.
- Ginger. Just a touch of the warming spice makes the crumble all the more comforting and reminiscent of both balmy summer nights and the autumn that’s to come.
For the pistachio ginger crumble topping, you’ll need:
- Flour. All-purpose flour is fine, unless you want to make a gluten free crumble.
- Pistachios. An added textural element to the crumble with an earthy yet sweet and mild flavour. It pairs well with all the summer fruit flavours and the ginger.
- Brown sugar. Use whatever brown sugar you have on hand, but a light brown sugar works best with the delicate fruit flavours and spices.
- Baking Powder. We’re not looking for a rise here, just enough to make the crumble topping tender so when you bite into it, it complements the fruit filling below rather than overtaking it.
- Cinnamon and ginger. Can’t have a crumble topping without cinnamon and ginger!
- Butter. The star ingredient that makes a crumble possible! Make sure to use unsalted butter so it doesn’t end up tasting too savoury. I use cool butter so the crumble stays in clumps while it bakes and becomes tender, instead of spreading out thinly and gravely like can happen with melted butter.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble
Crumbles are super easy to make. A little patience to slice up the fruit, a few minutes to bring the streusel topping together and the magic happens in the oven!
- Prep the fruit. Slice the nectarines into thin wedges and leave the raspberries whole. Mix them with a little sugar, orange juice, ginger and corn flour and tip out into the baking tray.
- Make the crumble topping. Add all the crumble topping ingredients to a bowl and using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour and pistachio mixture until large crumbs and clumps form – a bigger crumb is better for crumbles.
- Layer and bake. Scatter the crumb topping evenly over the fruit layer and bake until the fruit is soft, the streusel topping is lovely golden brown, and the fruit juices are bubbling up through the cracks.
- Serve. The juices with thicken and set as the crumble cools. Serve warm, drizzle with any juice from the bottom of the baking dish and vanilla ice cream, of course!
Love fruity desserts? Try these other recipes:
If you make this Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble, please be sure to leave a comment and let me know. Did you have some for breakfast the next day? Or tag me over on Instagram, I love seeing what you guys are making from the blog!
Raspberry and Nectarine Pistachio Crumble
Ingredients
For the Fruit Filling
- 6 yellow nectarines
- 400 g raspberries
- 50 g granulated sugar, depending on the sweetness of the fruit, you may need a little more
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
- Zest from 1 orange
- 1 tablespoon corn flour
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
For the Pistachio Crumble Topping
- 120 g all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup pistachios, chopped
- 80 g light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 100 g unsalted butter, cold
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C while you pit and slice the nectarines into thin wedges.6 yellow nectarines
- Add the nectarine wedges and whole raspberries to a large mixing bowl. Add the granulated sugar, orange zest and juice, corn flour and ground ginger, and gently mix, making sure all the fruit is covered. Pour the fruit mix out into a 25x25cm baking dish and set aside.400 g raspberries, 50 g granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice, Zest from 1 orange, 1 tablespoon corn flour, ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- To make the crumble topping, combine the flour, chopped pistachios, light brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Stir briefly to mix. Add in the cool, room temperature butter, and using your fingertips, or a pastry cutter, rub the butter into the dry ingredients until large crumbs and clumps form.120 g all-purpose flour, ¼ cup pistachios, 80 g light brown sugar, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon salt, 100 g unsalted butter
- Scatter the crumble mixture evenly over the prepared fruit and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the crumble topping is a deep golden colour and the fruit juices are bubbling up around the edges
- Allow to set and cool for 5 to 10 minutes and then serve, with any fruit juices from the bottom of the baking dish and vanilla ice cream.
