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This recipe for crumble topping is the perfect crumble for any pie recipe. You can make it with brown sugar or granulated sugar and it’s even the perfect topping for muffins or fruit crisp.
Crumble Topping for Pie
When I was in college I created my recipe for crumb apple pie. It was the first pie I’d ever made completely from scratch and it became my signature recipe that is constantly requested at every holiday. (Mel doesn’t even eat my dessert but my apple pie is one he will eat!)
We always joked that the pie would be fantastic with just crust and crumble, no filling. After all, the crust and the crumble are the best parts! That conversation led to this blog being created.
Ever since I first made this crumble recipe, I’ve been topping other pies with it. So many things change over time but the one thing that stays the same is this recipe. It’s the BEST crumble topping recipe you’ll ever make or eat and it goes perfect with any fruit pie.
I’ve also used this recipe with muffins and coffee cake, so it’s a super versatile crumb recipe. The beauty of this crumble topping recipe is that you can use any sugar or combination of sugar you like. Use all white, all brown, or a combination of the two!
4 Ingredients Needed
- Butter: Use slightly softened unsalted butter. You can use salted butter, but then omit the added salt. Soften it just a bit – not as soft as when you’re making cookies but not hard straight from the refrigerator.
- Sugar: You can use granulated sugar, brown sugar, or a combination of sugars in this recipe. Just use 2/3 cup of either or the combination.
- Flour: All-purpose flour gives the crumble it’s body. If you prefer an oat crumble, use this oatmeal crumble recipe.
- Salt: Just add a bit of salt only if using unsalted butter.
How to make Crumble
- Whisk your dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add your butter in small chunks or grated (see below)
- Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingredients.
- The crumble is done when it’s crumbly and pea-sized with no loose dry ingredients.
Grating the Butter makes it easier!
There is nothing harder than using a pastry cutter to cut in cubed or diced butter. It takes a lot of time and arm strength, so I created a shortcut: I grate the butter. If you want to make mixing the crumble much easier, grate the butter.
- Freeze the butter for about 30 minutes.
- Grate it using a box grater.
- Use as directed in the recipe.
Tip From Dorothy
Expert Tips
- Grating the butter makes it easier to cut into the ingredients, but it’s not required if you don’t want to.
- Crumble topping is delicate and should be crumbly, so you don’t want to use a mixer. You want to make crumble topping by hand, so I like using a pastry cutter.
- If you don’t have a pastry cutter, you can use a fork or two knives, but a pastry cutter is easier.
- You can make this up to a day ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Uses for Crumble Topping
- Use this recipe on peach pie or apple pie, blueberry pie, blackberry pie or any fruit you like.
- You can also top mini apple pies or mini berry pies.
- It makes enough topping for slab pie also!
- It’s also the perfect topping for peach crisp or apple crisp.
- Make crumble topping for muffins too!
Crumb Topping Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons (170g) unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup (133g) sugar (packed brown sugar or granulated sugar or a combination)
- 1 ½ cups (186g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Grate cold butter into a large bowl. Alternately, you can dice it small.
- Add sugar: use all brown or all white or a combination to make ⅔ cup. Use whatever combination you like (I like using ⅓ cup each brown and white).
- Add flour and then, using a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour and sugar until the mixture forms coarse crumbs.
- Use crumble as recipe directs, on a fruit pie or on muffins or coffee cake. Bake as directed in recipe.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- Store crumble in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before using.
- If using salted butter, omit added salt.
Recipe Nutrition
Favorite Pie Recipes
Last Updated on September 28, 2023
Cuisinart works like a charm. Put all ingredients in bowl with frozen butter last. Pulsed until all mixed, looked just like the photo. Took longer to cut butter than to mix topping. Great job!
I don’t know what happens but it turned out flat and not crumbly.
No cinnamon?
If you want cinnamon add cinnamon.
I’ve had this recipe forever! I wrote it out when I was a kid after having warm blueberry crumble with vanilla ice cream (or served cold with real whipped cream, adult version add 1t of bourbon to the whipped cream). It’s a verstile, easy recipe–I ‘ve gone through my old recipe box 3 times and there’s no card written in loopy middle school cursive. I’m so HAPPY to find the recipe here…the night before Thanksgiving! My pie crust isn’t stellar, so I’m making an apple crumble. I made Crumble (that’s what I call the resulting dessert) this summer with peaches and it was fab. And, I did a test run with apples a few weeks ago. I couldn’t find the recipe then, so I found “Crumble Topping for Fruit Pies.” Well, for Crumble, I skip the bottom crust and just serve the fruit topping.
I’d like to try to cut back the sugar in the entire recipe. I like the ratio in the crumble of butter, sugar and flour, so I’m not going to cut there. I’ll try to go with as little sugar in the fruit as I can manage. With blueberries, I mixed in some cinnamon with about 2 T of sugar. With peaches I used nutmeg. With apples I’m wondering if I should add some water, juice or butter to help the soften the apples and produce some juiciness?
Tried and tested — mouthwatering — won’t be looking anywhere else for receipt
Going to try to top. My sweet potato casserole
I was informed recently that crumble is not one of the major food groups… that’s just so wrong!
I found your site to get an actual recipe, I usually just wing it. Yours looks great and I’ll use it, maybe you can assist with what for… I’ve developed a spectacularly addictive homemade apple sauce with tons of brown sugar and a smattering of nice big chunks (a happy accident when I was in a hurry and used a Bullet to chop them up, but put them all in at once and a bunch were left delightfully large). I don’t even like applesauce, I made it for someone else, but this is fantastic and I’m obsessed. Now I want to make it into a pie with your crust and crumble. I can reduce the water and cook it down more, but I need something to thicken it and was thinking of corn starch or tapioca, but then I wondered about adding a jelly or jam or apple butter…??? I’m envisioning a consistency almost like a pecan pie… Should I just combine a pecan pie recipe without the pecans? Is there such a thing as applesauce pie??? I don’t bake much so I don’t have much experience to draw from. What would you suggest? Thanks! Holly ~ Vero Beach, FL
I loved it!!! it was so easy to make and it tasted so good.
Can you make this with all purpose gluten-free flour?Â
Yes, just did it exactly the same way….
This is my new “go to”. Best crumple…ever. Yes, ever
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