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This Gluten-Free Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble is a marriage of the best of this year’s sweet and tangy berries under a generous, crisp and slightly chewy crumble topping.
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If you adore gooseberries then this combination of the tart gooseberry with its softer sweeter strawberry cousin will have you hoarding them in your freezer so you can enjoy this dessert throughout the summer months.
Gooseberry season is much too short but this delicious Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble makes the most of their unique flavour and sharp bite.
This is the pudding that you will be serving up warm with ice cream on Sunday evenings and enjoying again for a cheeky breakfast on Monday mornings straight from the fridge. I can't be the only one to agree that there is even more joy to be had with leftover cold crumble.
Why you'll love this recipe
This is a quick and easy to make summer dessert with so much flavour that the whole family will fall in love with.
Macerate the gooseberries and strawberries for a few hours in sugar which preserves the shape of the fruit during the bake so they don’t fall into a mushy slump. Then mix the fruit with a bit of cinnamon and ginger and tapioca flour which absorbs the excess fruity liquid at the bottom of the crumble and forms an almost jelly. This jelly is the crown jewel of the crumble and I defy you not to drag your spoon at the bottom of the dish seeking out more whilst the crumble is cooling and you have already had your fill.
Need more gooseberry recipes? Why not try this excellent Seedless Gooseberry Jam with Thyme or these Gooseberry Custard Friands.
How to make a gluten-free crumble topping
In regular wheat-eating world the crumble topping is one of the easiest recipes to achieve.
In our gluten-free reality then to get that perfect crumble of slightly biscuity, a little chewy once it hits the fruit and minimal amount of sinking into the fruity depths then it is a lot trickier. This is because the starchy flours that will give the crumble topping its body are very light and do have a tendency to sink. But the wholegrain flours need the starch to stop it turning into a dusty dry topping. We need the right balance of gluten-free flours:
- Sweet rice flour (aka glutinous rice flour/mochiko). This starchy flour gives the crumble topping a great structure. READ MORE >>> The Ultimate Guide to Sweet Rice Flour.
- Oat flour. This wholegrain flour gives a lovely biscuity flavour and robust texture to the crumble topping so it doesn't all fall into a soggy puddle. If you can't have oat flour then sorghum flour or buckwheat flour are excellent substitutions. READ MORE >>> The Ultimate Guide to Oat Flour.
- Tapioca flour. This is another starchy flour which browns very well so not only does it help with the structure but it also gives a lovely golden colour. READ MORE >>> The Ultimate Guide to Tapioca Flour.
Ingredients needed
The fruity base
- strawberries
- gooseberries
- caster sugar
- tapioca flour
- ground ginger
- ground cinnamon
- vanilla extract
The crumble topping
- sweet rice flour (aka glutinous rice flour/mochiko)
- gluten-free oat flour
- tapioca flour (tapioca starch)
- almonds
- light brown sugar
- unsalted butter
- ground cinnamon
- ground ginger
- salt
How to make it
For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Toss hulled strawberries and top and tailed gooseberries with caster sugar in a large bowl and leave to macerate for 4 hours.
- Pour the fruit and the juice into the bottom of a baking dish and stir in the tapioca flour, ginger, cinnamon and vanilla extract.
- Mix the flours together in a bowl with almonds and sugars then rub in the butter until it starts to clump together. You can do this by hand or in a food processor.
- Cover the fruit with the crumble topping then bake for 35-40 minutes.
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Make ahead
This Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble can be made up to 3 days ahead of time. Just cover the dish with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Re-heat in an oven pre-heated to 190°C/ 170°C fan assisted oven / gas mark 5 for about 25 minutes.
How to freeze
This crumble also freezes very well. Wrap the whole baking dish up in plastic wrap and aluminium foil. Double wrapped to avoid freezer spoilage. It will keep for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature overnight then re-heat as above.
How to substitute the gooseberries
If you have fallen short of gooseberries this year then you don’t have to wait until next year as wild blackberries would make an ideal replacement. They have the same tartness which would pair very well with the last of the season’s strawberries.
What to serve with crumble
There is always a hefty divide when you try and pin a member of our family down on what they want with their crumble. It kind of depends whether it's one of those scorching summer days or a cooler British one. Nevertheless we have lots of options:
- Ice Cream.
- Homemade Gluten-Free Vanilla Custard.
- Homemade Strawberry Custard.
- Or just lashings of single cream.
More summer dessert recipes you'll love!
- Apple Blackberry Crumble
- Plum Nectarine Cornbread Cobbler
- Blackberry Lemon Pudding
- Raspberry Pudding
- Gluten-Free Fresh Strawberry Cake
- Red Berry Eton Mess
I urge you to give this Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble a try. If you do then please leave a comment below and give the recipe a rating which helps others find the recipe on Google. If you then go on to use this recipe as a launch pad for your own culinary creation then I’d also love it if you’d share it and tag me on Instagram. It is so lovely for me to see your versions and variations of my recipes.
Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble
Ingredients
- 400 g strawberries
- 300 g gooseberries
- 50 g caster sugar
- 4 tablespoons tapioca flour
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Crumble Topping
- 80 g sweet rice flour - (glutinous rice flour / mochiko)
- 60 g gluten-free oat flour
- 25 g tapioca flour
- 80 g whole almonds - roughly chopped
- 150 g light brown sugar
- 125 g unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Hull the strawberries and top and tail the gooseberries then tip into a large bowl and toss with the caster sugar.
- Cover the bowl with cling film and leave for at least 4 hours to macerate (overnight is okay).
- Pre-heat the oven to 190°C/ 170°C fan assisted oven / gas mark 5.
- Pour the fruit and the juice into the bottom of a baking dish and stir in the tapioca flour.
- Sprinkle the ginger, cinnamon and vanilla extract over the fruit and stir in.
- In a separate bowl mix the flours, almonds and sugars together then rub in the butter until it starts to clump together. I used the paddle attachment of a food processor for ease in this step but don’t take the crumble too far or it will be too sandy.
- Cover the fruit with the crumble topping then place in the oven for 35-40 minutes until the top of the crumble is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling up from within.
Notes
Substitutions
- You can swap the gooseberries for the same amount of blackberries.
- You can swap the total sum of the gluten-free flours for plain all-purpose flour if you don't need it to be gluten-free. But please don't swap for an all-purpose gluten-free flour - the crumble recipe won't work.
Make ahead
This Strawberry Gooseberry Crumble can be made up to 3 days ahead of time. Just cover the dish with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Re-heat in an oven pre-heated to 190°C/ 170°C fan assisted oven / gas mark 6 for about 25 minutes.How to freeze
This crumble also freezes very well. Wrap the whole baking dish up in plastic wrap and aluminium foil. Double wrapped to avoid freezer spoilage. It will keep for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature overnight then re-heat as above.Ingredient measurements
- Please note when you see ‘grams’ listed as opposed to ‘millilitres,’ or any other term of measurement, that is not incorrect. I weigh all of my ingredients, including liquids, for accuracy.
- US customary measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups
Janet Barton says
Hello Georgina, I made your this this weeken, my son had asked for crumble for his birthday pudding and although he isn't eating gluten free I am! I made a few changes to fit what we wanted, the fruit part was apple and blueberry and my son had asked for oats in the topping so I subbed the almonds with oats. It was absolutely delicious! I have friends coming to lunch on Wednesday and will make it again for them. Thank you.
Georgina says
Hi Janet, thank you so much for your feedback. I love to hear how readers have adapted the recipes and made them their own - blueberry and apple sounds a killer combo. And I'm happy the recipe was so successful for you!