Vegan Gooseberry and White Currant Crumble Recipe - The Vegan Word (2024)

If you like your desserts as tart as they are sweet, then this sour vegan gooseberry and whitecurrant crumble is for you.

Depending on what you have to hand, you can either make it with all gooseberries, all currants (redcurrants or blackcurrants would also work) or a mix of the two. If you can’t find either, substitute a sour seasonal fruit.

After getting gooseberries and whitecurrants from Food Assembly, I wasn’t quite sure what to do with them. You know when you pick up a new food and buy it out of excitement but later frantically Google what on earth to do with it? Yeah, it was like that.

Gooseberries and whitecurrants are both extremely sour (seriously, don’t pick up a gooseberry and eat it plain unless you’re one of those people that likes squeezing lemon juice straight into your mouth). So, most recipes for either gooseberries or crumble suggest a sweet crumble or pastry.

I decided to combine both of them into one simple crumble. It needs quite a bit of sugar to balance the tartness of the fruit, but if you like sour flavours, then feel free to reduce the sugar content.

Vegan Gooseberry and Whitecurrant Crumble

Ingredients

• 550 grams / 1.2 lbs gooseberries or currants, or a mix of both. Top and tail the gooseberries (cut the top and bottom off each).
• 85 grams / 3 oz (1/3 cup + 1 tbsp) sugar
• 175 grams / 6 oz (1.5 cups) flour
• 75 grams / 2.6 oz (1/3 cup) sugar
• 85 grams / 3 oz (1/3 cup) vegan margarine

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 C / 350 F / gas mark 4.
2. Top and tail the gooseberries if using (cut the top and bottom off each berry).
3. Arrange the gooseberries and currants on the bottom of an ovenproof baking dish.
4. Sprinkle the berries and currants with 2 tablespoons of water, then 85 grams of sugar.
5. To make the topping for the crumble, rub together the flour, 75 grams of sugar and vegan margarine until it forms small pebbles. It should take on a breadcrumb-like texture with a few larger and smaller pebbles.
6. Sprinkle the crumble over the gooseberries/currants and place in the oven. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the top is browned and the berries are bubbling.
7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Serve warm (goes well with vanilla nondairy ice cream!).