Mulberry And Apple Crumble Recipe (Easy, Family-Friendly)

This mulberry and apple crumble is a simple family dessert: soft diced apple and juicy mulberries under a buttery oat and coconut topping, baked at 180°C for about 35 minutes. It serves 6, takes around 20 minutes to prepare, and works with fresh mulberries in spring or frozen ones any time of year. You can also make it as a straight mulberry crumble by swapping the apples for more berries.

Updated October 2026

Serves	6
Prep time	20 minutes
Cook time	30–40 minutes, plus 10 minutes resting
Oven	180°C conventional (160°C fan-forced)
Dish	About 1.5–2 litre baking dish (for example 20 x 20 cm or a 23 cm pie dish)
Contains	Wheat (gluten), oats, dairy (butter). Optional nuts.

Measures are Australian standard: 1 cup = 250 ml, 1 tablespoon = 20 ml, 1 teaspoon = 5 ml. Gram weights are approximate conversions, so either set of measures will work.

Table of Contents

Ingredients

Fruit filling

3 medium apples (about 500 g), such as Granny Smith, Pink Lady or Royal Gala
2 cups (about 300 g) mulberries, fresh or frozen
1 tablespoon brown sugar (optional; taste your fruit first)
2 teaspoons maize cornflour (helps thicken the mulberry juice; choose one labelled gluten free for the gluten-free version)
2 tablespoons water

Crumble topping

¾ cup (about 110 g) self-raising flour
½ cup (about 45 g) rolled oats
⅓ cup (about 25 g) shredded or desiccated coconut
⅓ cup firmly packed (about 75 g) brown sugar
100 g cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
Optional: ⅓ cup (about 40 g) chopped almonds, walnuts or pecans (see the allergy and choking notes below)

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced) and lightly grease your baking dish.
Prepare the apples. Peel, core and cut the apples into pieces about 1.5 cm across. Smaller pieces cook through in the same time as the topping browns.
Mix the filling. In the baking dish, toss the apple, mulberries, sugar (if using), cornflour and water until the fruit is coated. If your mulberries are frozen, add them straight from the freezer.
Make the topping. In a bowl, mix the flour, oats, coconut and brown sugar. Add the cold butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs with a few pea-sized clumps. Stir through the nuts if using. This is a great job for kids with clean hands.
Top and bake. Scatter the topping evenly over the fruit without pressing it down. Bake for 30–40 minutes, until the top is golden and the fruit is bubbling at the edges. A knife should slide easily into a piece of apple. Frozen fruit usually needs the longer end of that range.
Rest before serving. Leave the crumble for about 10 minutes. The juices thicken as they cool, and the fruit is very hot straight out of the oven, so check the temperature before serving to children.

Serve with custard, vanilla ice cream or a spoonful of plain Greek yoghurt.

Tips for the best mulberry crumble

Mulberry season. Fresh mulberries usually turn up in spring and early summer, often from a neighbour’s or grandparent’s backyard tree. Pick them on a dry day, rinse gently just before using, and remove the stems.
Freeze the glut. Spread washed, dried mulberries on a tray, freeze until firm, then bag them. They go straight into this recipe without thawing.
Watch the stains. Mulberry juice stains hands, clothes and benches. Pop an apron on little helpers.
Want a crunchier top? Chill the topping for 10 minutes before scattering it, and don’t press it down.
Swaps. No mulberries? Use blackberries, raspberries or mixed frozen berries in the same quantity.

Mulberry crumble without apple

For an all-mulberry crumble, use about 4 cups (600 g) mulberries and increase the cornflour to 1 tablespoon, because mulberries release a lot of juice. Leave out the water. Taste the berries first: very ripe backyard mulberries may not need any sugar in the filling, while tart ones may need 2 tablespoons. Bake for the same time, until the topping is golden and the juice bubbles thickly at the edges.

Allergies, babies and toddlers

Allergens in this recipe. The topping contains wheat and oats (gluten) and dairy (butter), plus tree nuts if you add them. If anyone eating has a diagnosed food allergy, follow the advice of their doctor or allergist, and check the labels on your flour, oats and coconut. The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) has guidance on introducing common allergy foods to babies.
Gluten-free version. Use a gluten-free self-raising flour blend and maize cornflour labelled gluten free. Check all other ingredients and any custard, yoghurt or ice cream too, as some Australian cornflour is made from wheat. Oats cannot be labelled gluten free in Australia, and Coeliac Australia recommends people with coeliac disease discuss oats with their medical team, so swap the oats for extra coconut or gluten-free flakes if needed. (Coeliac Australia: oats FAQ)
Dairy-free version. Use a dairy-free baking block instead of butter and serve with a dairy-free custard or yoghurt.
For babies under 12 months. Australian infant feeding advice is not to add sugar or salt to baby food. Before mixing the filling, reserve a small portion of raw apple and mulberry. Cook that separately with a little water and no added sugar until completely soft, then mash or purée it to suit your baby’s stage and let it cool. (Department of Health: Get Up & Grow first foods)
Choking. Nuts and hard pieces of raw apple are choking risks for young children. Leave chopped nut pieces out when serving children under four, and make sure the apple is cooked soft. (Raising Children Network: choking prevention)

If you have questions about starting solids or allergies, your GP or maternal and child health nurse can help.

Storing, freezing and reheating

The Food Safety Information Council advises cooling and covering leftovers and getting them into the fridge or freezer within 2 hours, and eating refrigerated leftovers within 3 days. (Food Safety Information Council: leftovers) For this crumble:

Fridge: cover and refrigerate within 2 hours of baking; eat within 3 days.
Freezer: freeze baked portions in airtight containers. You can also freeze the unbaked topping in a bag and scatter it over fresh fruit straight from frozen.
Reheating: reheat in a 180°C oven for 15–20 minutes (covered with foil if browning) or in the microwave, until hot all the way through. Let it cool to a safe temperature before serving to children.

Looking for more easy family desserts? Try our 30-second self-saucing chocolate pudding in a mug, the Mudpuff Caramelstuff puddings, or these ideas for using apple pie flavours in everyday dishes.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use frozen mulberries in apple and mulberry crumble?

Yes. Add them straight from the freezer without thawing so they don’t turn to mush. Allow the longer baking time of around 40 minutes, and keep the cornflour in to thicken the extra juice.

Do I need to cook the apples first?

Not if you dice them to about 1.5 cm. Small pieces soften in the time the crumble takes to bake. If you prefer bigger chunks, or you’re using very firm apples, simmer them with the water for 5 minutes before adding the mulberries.

Can I make mulberry crumble ahead of time?

Yes. Keep the fruit filling and topping separate in the fridge for up to a day, then assemble and bake just before serving so the topping stays crisp. The topping also freezes well on its own.

Can I make it with less sugar?

Yes. Leave the sugar out of the filling entirely if your fruit is sweet, and cut the topping sugar back to ¼ cup (about 55 g). The topping will be a little paler and less crunchy but still tasty.

Recipe originally shared by Foodie Mumma Ren, updated and expanded in October 2026.

Apple & Mulberry Crumble (Easy Family Recipe)