TASTE - A Crumble for One | TASTE

Preheat oven to 375°F. Massage all of the topping ingredients together in a bowl with one hand. Don’t be afraid of it. Crush the butter into the dry ingredients and let it completely come together into homogenous clumps. This takes 2 minutes with one hand, kneading it like you would a stress ball or your aching shoulder. Put the bowl in the fridge. Prepare the fruit. Don’t be too fussy about it, but consider how bite-sized pieces of raw fruit will be easier to eat, once cooked, than larger pieces. Also: Pieces of the same size will cook more evenly. Grease a mug or small deep plate (this works well for the banana) or ramekin or oven-safe cereal bowl, or any small oven-safe container with a bit of butter. Put fruit in the bottom. Pull cold crumble topping from the fridge and sprinkle it on top. Place the dish in the preheated oven. Wait 8 minutes. Your kitchen should start to smell nice. If your oven doesn't have a window, crack the door a bit to check on it; close it quickly. It will probably need another 5 minutes. Take the crisp out when it looks good: bubbly, fragrant, deep brown, toasty, and caramelized. Let it cool while you look for a pint of vanilla ice cream in your over-packed freezer or the tiny tub of creme fraiche you splurged on last week. Let it cool a bit more while you fiddle with the oven to make sure it's turned all the way off. Let it cool a tiny bit longer while you do the dishes maybe, or find a good book to read. The point here is: Don't burn your mouth! But, yes, eat it while it's warm, and with a spoon.