070 / 75 · Make the Most of What Is Left
Warm Apple and Toasted-Crumb Yogurt Pots
4 yogurt pots with warm apples and toasted bread crumbs · Active 20 min · Total 30 min
Print recipe · PDFSound stale bread can make a crisp topping without needing a separate packet of biscuits or breakfast cereal. Coarse crumbs are toasted with a little butter, sugar and cinnamon, then scattered over warm pan-cooked apples and plain yogurt. The three parts stay separate until serving. This is a modest sweet finish, with the apple pieces still visible rather than cooked into a smooth sauce.
Crumbs can have a little character
Cut or tear the bread into very small uneven pieces. A food processor is convenient but unnecessary; a knife and a little patience give a coarser topping with more texture. Use a plain loaf rather than one strongly flavored with garlic, seeds or olives. The bread should be dry and sound. Toasting cannot make mouldy bread suitable to eat. The butter and measured sugar help the crumbs color, so keep turning them and remove the pan from the heat before the smallest pieces become dark.
Cook the apple in two stages
Leave the skins on if they are in good condition, remove the cores and cut the fruit into similar small chunks. The initial covered cooking uses a spoonful of water to soften the apple without burning the sugar. Uncover once the pieces begin to yield, then allow excess liquid to evaporate. Some apples collapse quickly and others remain firm, so judge a piece with the tip of a knife rather than only watching the clock. Stop while the fruit still has a shape. A few soft edges are pleasant; a pan of wet puree would soak the topping immediately.
Assembly is the last job
Divide the yogurt into four small bowls while the apple rests briefly off the heat. The fruit can be warm, but it should not be so fiercely hot that it thins every spoonful of yogurt. Add the apples and scatter on the crumbs at the table. If only two portions are needed, keep the remaining parts in separate containers rather than making four pots in advance. This preserves the contrast between cool yogurt, warm fruit and crisp crumbs, and gives a clear use for a few slices that might otherwise linger at the back of the bread bin.
Ingredients
- 4 medium eating apples, cored but not necessarily peeled (600 g prepared), cut into 1/2-inch/1 cm chunks
- 4 slices plain stale bread (120 g), chopped into coarse crumbs
- 2 tablespoons butter (28 g), divided
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar (36 g), divided
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (2.5 g), divided
- 2 tablespoons water (30 ml)
- About 1 2/3 cups plain unsweetened yogurt (400 g)
Set out
Large skillet, Small skillet, Lid, Knife and chopping board, Four small serving bowls, Spatula
Allergens
Milk, Wheat. Check labels and substitutions.
Make it
- Heat half the butter in the large skillet over medium-low heat. Add apples, 2 tablespoons/24 g sugar, half the cinnamon and the water. Cover and cook for 6–8 minutes, stirring once, until the apple begins to soften.
- Remove the lid and cook for 5–7 minutes, stirring gently, until the apple is tender but still in pieces and the excess liquid has evaporated. Remove from the heat and stand for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile melt the remaining butter in the small skillet over medium-low heat. Add bread crumbs, remaining 1 tablespoon/12 g sugar and cinnamon. Toast for 7–9 minutes, stirring often, until crisp and golden. Take off the heat before small crumbs scorch.
- Divide yogurt among four bowls, 100 g per bowl. Divide warm apples over it and scatter the toasted crumbs on top just before serving.
Use the loaf before buying another topping
Weigh the bread ends before choosing a batch size. Plain crusts can join the crumbs when chopped small. The topping is deliberately made from bread already on hand, rather than requiring a second sweet snack purchase.
Ingredient labels
Check the bread label for egg, soy, sesame or other added allergens.
A useful detail
The prepared apple weight excludes the cores. The skins may remain if preferred. The 30-minute total assumes the crumb pan cooks alongside the apples; using one skillet sequentially takes about 10 minutes longer.
Another way
- Use 600 g prepared firm pears instead of apples. Start checking them after 5 minutes because ripe pears soften faster.
- Replace cinnamon with 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, divided between fruit and crumbs, if that is the spice already in the cupboard.
Keep it well
Keep components separate. Refrigerate cooked apples within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, and keep covered at 40°F/4°C or below for up to 2 days; keep yogurt refrigerated within its label guidance. Cool toasted crumbs completely and store in a dry airtight container for the next day, or freeze for up to 1 month. Reheat stored apples to 165°F/74°C, then let them stand briefly before adding cold yogurt and crumbs.