Bright and tangy cape gooseberries create a juicy, jammy filling for these individual-sized fruit crumbles. They’re topped with a sweet crumb topping studded with oats and desiccated coconut, plus a hint of lemon zest for a little extra zing.
This post is sponsored by Sprouts. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
When it comes to fruit-forward desserts, nothing allows the fruit to play a starring role quite like a basic crumble. It's incredibly easy to make, requires relatively few ingredients, and turns any sort of fruit into a juicy, syrupy treat that's somewhat akin to pie, except, you know, way less fussy. The beauty of this dessert is in its versatility; you can adapt it to pretty much any fruit under the sun.
In this case, it turns cape gooseberries - a golden, tart, somewhat citrusy tropical fruit - into a sweet, tangy, crumble that bursts with flavor. The crumb topping, a streusel mix studded with rolled oats and coconut threads, adds just the right amount of crunchy texture and sugary sweetness to balance out the tartness of the fruit, and acts as the perfect base for a big ol' scoop of vanilla ice cream served on top. Whether you choose to call this gooseberry-laden dessert a crisp or a crumble - the distinction between them seems to vary depending on who you ask - I can't think of a better way to make use of this unique fruit! This is also a great small-batch recipe if you're not looking to feed a crowd. It makes just two individual gooseberry crumbles.
Jump to:
What are cape gooseberries?
Cape gooseberries - otherwise known by a variety of names including golden berries, ground cherries, and poha - are small round tropical fruits grown in husks, similar to tomatillos. Although they share a name with English gooseberries, the two fruits are entirely different. Cape gooseberries have a golden-orange color when ripe, with the texture of a tomato and a bright, tart, and tangy flavor. The taste is difficult to describe, but leans somewhat citrusy, with a hint of tomato. They can be eaten raw, but are often used in sweet recipes like jams, jellies, and pies, and they add an incredible zing of flavor to these gooseberry crumbles.
Cape gooseberries have a very short season and can be difficult to find, but you can look for them (and plenty of other exotic tropical fruit) at your local Sprouts! They always have a great selection of uncommon and unique produce there; it's the perfect place to discover new ingredients for baking.
Ingredients and Substitutions
In addition to gooseberries, you'll need just a few other ingredients to make these crumbles. Here's the full list, separated by grocery aisle.
Amounts are in the recipe card.
Baking Ingredients: Gluten-free all-purpose flour with xanthan gum, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and baking powder; regular all-purpose flour should also work as a 1:1 swap if you're not concerned about this recipe being gluten-free.
Dairy: Salted butter; you can also use unsalted and add an extra ⅛ teaspoon of salt for the crumb topping.
Produce: Cape gooseberries and a whole lemon (for zesting); Orange zest would also work well! When cape gooseberries aren't in season, you can also swap them out for a different fruit, like mixed berries.
Miscellaneous: Unsweetened desiccated coconut threads and gluten-free rolled oats; you can find both of these ingredients in the bulk bin area at Sprouts.
How to make these gooseberry crumbles
Alright, let's hop right into baking these gooseberry crumbles/crisps.
Step one - Preheat the oven. Set it to 375ºF.
Step two - Prep the crumble topping. Whisk together the dry ingredients for the topping in a small mixing bowl. Add melted butter and mix it in with a small spatula until everything is evenly moistened and begins coming together. At this point, you can use your hands to finish bringing the mixture together into a single ball of dough. Pop the dough in the freezer while you move on to step three.
Step three - Prep the gooseberry filling: In a medium bowl, toss the (husked and chopped) cape gooseberries with sugar and flour until they're evenly coated.
Step four - Assemble: Divide the gooseberry filling between two small ramekins (to make the perfect individual-size crumbles!) Use your hands to break up the streusel topping into small crumbs, and sprinkle those over the top of the filling in each ramekin.
Step five - Bake: Place the two ramekins over a parchment or foil-lined baking sheet (to catch any fruit juice as the crumbles cook), and bake them for 25-30 minutes. The filling should be bubbling and the streusel perfectly golden when they're done.
Serving tips
These crumbles are best served warm from the oven, while the gooseberry filling is extra jammy, and the streusel topping is crisp and buttery. Although they don't need any additions, they're even better served with a cold scoop of vanilla ice cream or a fluffy dollop of whipped cream. The creaminess does a great job of cutting through the tang of the cape gooseberries, and wraps all of the flavors together in a neat little envelope of deliciousness.
Recipe FAQ
Yes! When cape gooseberries aren't in season, you can swap them with any other fruit typically used in a crumble. You may need to adjust the amount of flour in the filling depending on the juiciness of the fruit you use, but berries work well as a direct substitute. You can also swap half of the gooseberries in this filling with a different fruit to switch up the flavor. Raspberries would be a great addition, since they have a similarly sweet-tart flavor.
These gooseberry crumbles are best served fresh, and since the recipe only makes two individual servings, it should be easy to polish them off quickly. But if you do decide to make them ahead, cover them with plastic wrap and keep them in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve them. You can reheat them in the microwave for 30-45 seconds to warm them back up.
More recipes you'll love
When you can't get your hands on cape gooseberries, try one of these other fruit-forward, crumbles, crisps, and cobblers.
Have you made this recipe?
If so, I'd love to hear your feedback; you can leave a rating and review in the comments section below! It's also so helpful if you help spread the word by sharing this post on your favorite social media channel. If you happen to snap a photo of what you've baked, be sure to share it on Instagram and tag me (@brighteyedbaker) so I can give you a shoutout!
Recipe Card
Individual Gooseberry Crumbles
Bright and tangy cape gooseberries create a juicy, jammy filling for these individual-sized fruit crumbles. They’re topped with a sweet crumb topping studded with oats and desiccated coconut, plus a hint of lemon zest for a little extra zing.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes (up to 30 minutes)
- Total Time: 45 minutes (up to 50 minutes)
- Yield: 2 single-serving crumbles 1x
- Category: crumbles, crisps, and cobblers
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Crumble Topping:
- ¼ cup plus 2 teaspoons, spoon and level (1 ¼ ounces) gluten-free all-purpose flour with xanthan gum
- 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon. brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened dessicated coconut threads
- 1 tablespoon gluten-free rolled oats
- ⅜ teaspoon lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
Gooseberry Filling:
- 1 ½ cups (9 ¼ ounces) peeled and chopped Cape gooseberries/goldenberries
- ½ cup + 1 Tbsp. (4 ounces) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons gluten-free all-purpose flour with xanthan gum
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 375ºF.
- Prep the Crumble Topping: In a small mixing bowl, thoroughly whisk together the dry ingredients for the crumble topping: flour, brown sugar, coconut threads, oats, lemon zest, and baking powder. Use a small spatula to mix in the melted butter until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened and the mixture starts to clump together. Use your hands to finish bringing the mixture together into a single ball of dough. Transfer to freezer to chill while prepping the gooseberry filling.
- Prep the Gooseberry Filling: Combine chopped Cape gooseberries with granulated sugar and flour in a medium mixing bowl. Toss together until the gooseberries are evenly coated in the flour and sugar mixture.
- Assemble: Divide filling evenly between two 6-ounce ramekins. Use your hands to break the chilled ball of dough up into crumbles, and divide over the top of the filling in each ramekin.
- Bake: Place ramekins over a baking sheet lined with parchment or foil and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the crumble topping is golden and the filling is bubbling. Cool briefly, and serve warm with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
Notes
Substitutions:
Regular all-purpose flour can likely be substituted for gluten-free flour in this recipe.
Orange zest may be used in place of lemon zest.
When gooseberries aren't in season, you can easily swap them for another fruit. Berries work well for a 1:1 substitution.
Vicky
These individual little desserts look awesome and the fact that they are gluten-free makes them even better! Thanks for the recipe!
Beth
This looks interesting and so delicious! My family is going to love try this dessert! So excited to give this a try!
Irina
Your pictures of this individually served dessert are so beautiful that I got a desire to make it ASAP. Now I am in search of gooseberries to make it! :)
cyndy
I love gooseberries because they are so unusual. I love the tart flavor and your topping was delicious!
Michelle
I've seen these before at the farmers market but had no idea what to do with them. I'll have to try this next time I see them