05 Sep Toddler & Baby Oaty Rhubarb Crumble
Perfect for baby and toddlers, this yummy and nutritious crumble is ideal for a treat or a delicious spring family recipe.
Enjoy a delicious crumble that’s perfect for toddlers and babies from the ‘River Cottage Baby and Toddler Cookbook’.
This crumble topping uses oats and fine oatmeal, so it’s wheat-free. You can use it on top of other fruits – try peeled, cored and sliced apple, tossed with sugar, sultanas and cinnamon, blackberries, or stoned and quartered plums, trickled with a little maple syrup.
*FREEZER FRIENDLY* Make up a double or triple quantity of the topping mixture and freeze the excess for use later on.
For babies: You can mash the crumble – perhaps loosening with a little cream – to make it easier for a younger baby to eat from a spoon.
Ingredients
For the crumble topping
- 125g fine oatmeal
- 125g porridge oats
- (not jumbo)
- 100g cold, unsalted butter,
- cut into small cubes
- 65g demerara sugar
For the fruit
- 750g rhubarb, trimmed
- Juice of 1 orange, or
- about 75ml apple juice
- 50g caster sugar
River Cottage Baby & Toddler Oaty Rhubarb
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 4.
To make the crumble topping, put the oatmeal, oats and butter in a food processor and pulse briefly until the butter is worked into the oatmeal and the mixture resembles fine crumbs – don’t overdo it, or it will start to clump together too much. Tip into a bowl and stir in the demerara sugar.
Wash the rhubarb and cut it into 1–2cm pieces. Spread it in an ovenproof dish (about a 2-litre capacity).
Squeeze the orange juice over it, or sprinkle on the apple juice, then evenly scatter over the caster sugar. This amount of sugar should be fine for the new season, forced rhubarb – the slender-stemmed, bright pink stuff. If you’re using robust, outdoor-grown rhubarb later in the year, you might need a little more.
Spoon the oat topping over the rhubarb in an even layer.
Bake for about 45 minutes until golden brown on top and bubbling underneath. Serve hot, warm or cold with cream, yoghurt or custard.
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This is an edited extract from River Cottage Baby & Toddler Cookbook by Nikki Duffy published by Bloomsbury, Hardback RRP $29.99. Available at all good bookshops.
