Gluten-Free Plum Tahini Crumble
Yes, I'm aware that the crumble looks like chopped meat. We'll get to that.
And yes, you heard me - plum tahini crumble. It's way less odd and way more appetizing than it sounds. Unless you're one of those people that has already learned to appreciate the important and delicious role that tahini can play in desserts, in which case this plum tahini crumble is just as mouthwatering as it sounds.
I guess this is the type of recipe that you really can't judge based on either its looks or its title. I'm asking a lot of you, I know. But pretty please give this gluten-free plum tahini crumble the benefit of the doubt.
This is the first recipe on the blog to ever feature plums. But it's the end of June. And it's officially summer. And so it's time for a summer fruit crumble. My fruit of choice: plums.
Because plums look and taste awesome. And because, like I said, I haven't posted a recipe with plums yet. And because I got this idea into my head to try out a fruit crumble with a crumble that is primarily made up of tahini, and for some reason plums and tahini seemed to pair well together in my mind.
Which certainly turned out to be the case. Plums + tahini = OH BABY.
Now, about the chopped meat thing. If I had the choice, I wouldn't choose to have my fruit crumbles looking like a pile of sloppy joes. But I didn't have the choice when it came to this tahini crumble, because to get the out-of-this-world taste of the tahini cookie crumble, sacrifices to appearance had to be made.
I chose flavor over looks. You'll understand why once you make this plum tahini crumble and take a bite. Its taste more than makes up for its uncanny similarity to the appearance of crumbled hamburgers.
I'm done with the meat comparisons now, by the way; you can take your head out of the toilet bowl.
If you've ever tried these wholesome flourless tahini cookies, you can already understand how amazing this tahini crumble tastes. Because I based this tahini crumble off of that tahini cookie recipe.
Instead of mixing some dry, crumbly ingredients together (which I'm not hating on, I'm a fan of those types of crumbles too), I decided to use a cookie recipe as my crumble. Because cookies are softer and chewier and gooier than a regular crumble mixture. And who doesn't love a soft and chewy and gooey cookie? (Don't say "me" if you're that person. I won't be able to handle that right now.)
And this crumble is unbelievable. It's rich and deeply flavored. The bottom layer of the crumble is soft and chewy and gooey, and the top layer, the one that's exposed most to the oven heat, gets perfectly crispy and golden-brown.
And by "bottom layer," I don't mean that there's a layer of crumble, then a layer of fruit, and then another layer of crumble on top. There's no crumble underneath the plums. I just mean that there's a lot of crumble on top of the fruit, enough to constitute calling some of the crumble "bottom layer" and some of the crumble "top layer."
Life tip: always be generous with your crumble when making fruit crumbles.
The crumble mixture in this recipe is gluten-free. Flourless, in fact. Tahini is the main ingredient, with some coconut sugar to sweeten it up, some egg and baking powder to bind the ingredients together and help leaven them, some vanilla extract and salt for more flavor, and some optional chopped nuts for even more flavor goodness and crunch.
And to keep the whole crumble gluten-free and wholesome, the plum mixture uses almond meal in place of flour/cornstarch to help thicken it up a bit. Coconut sugar is used again to sweeten the fruit mixture, and cinnamon and vanilla extract are used to flavor it.
Wholesome, gluten-free, tart and juicy on bottom, rich and flavorful and sweet and chewy and crispy on top - it's your new favorite summer fruit crumble, folks.
gluten-free plum tahini crumble
Yield: large crumble
Plum Mixture:
6 ripe plums
1/3 cup coconut sugar* (increase amount if plums are more tart)
3 tablespoons almond flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Tahini Crumble:
1 cup tahini
1 cup coconut sugar*
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a deep pie dish or any other large pan of choice.
Slice the plums into thinnish wedges and add to a large bowl. Add in the rest of the plum mixture ingredients and stir until plums are evenly coated. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, stir tahini with coconut sugar until smooth. Mix in rest of crumble ingredients until smooth.
Strain the liquid out of plum mixture (do not skip) and then pour plums into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle all the tahini crumble on top.
Place crumble on lower rack of oven and bake until fruit juices start bubbling and crumble is browned on the edges, about 25 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream if desired.
*Note: you can substitute brown sugar for the coconut sugar.
