Wintry apple bake with double ginger crumble

 from: smitten kitchen

Ingredients

For the filling

• 3 large, firm, tart baking apples (680g to 775g total or 1½ to 1¾ pounds)
• zest and juice of ½ lemon
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• a few gratings of fresh nutmeg
• a pinch of ground cloves
• 2 tsp (10ml) brandy, or 1 tsp (5ml) vanilla extract
• 40g (3 tbsp) granulated sugar
• a pinch of salt

For the topping

• 150g (about ⅔ cup) unsalted butter
• 50g (¼ cup) demerara sugar
• 50g (¼ cup) granulated sugar
• ¼ tsp coarse or sea salt
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 260g (2 cups) plain flour, or more if needed
• 1 tbsp (10g) finely chopped candied ginger, or more to taste (optional)

Method

Heat the oven to 375*

Peel, halve, and core your apples. Cut each piece into 1-inch wedges. Arrange these in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, brandy, sugar, and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples, and toss the pieces so that they’re coated.

Make the crumbs

Melt the butter in a large bowl or saucepan. Stir in the sugars, then add the salt, baking powder, and ground ginger. Stir in the flour and candied ginger. Clumps of dough should easily form; if not, add another tablespoon of flour, and stir again.

Sprinkle the crumble on top of the prepared apples.

Bake the crumble

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the crumble is lightly browned and apples poked with the tip of a knife have no resistance.