It seems like the traditional British dessert arrived in France and turned savory. Crumbles are becoming very trendy in France and quite popular, I can understand why, they’re just really delicious. So, yes, we stole it from the British and somehow made some transformations to it. I don’t know much about British cuisine, but I know crumble comes straight from the other side of the Channel.

This is my third post featuring a savory crumble, and I will continue to explore them. Crumbles are so good, most of all very easy to make, and certainly always appreciated among guests. They make wonderful appetizers. I just love to nibble on the crust and dig to get what’s underneath. The goat cheese has melted and infused with the garlicky tomato and eggplant, so you can dip some toasted walnut bread in the juices.

I had taken tons of photos yesterday and for whatever strange reason, when I downloaded them on my computer, they had disappeared from the memory card, and by that time my meal was long gone and digested. I was really disappointed – I still don’t know where the problem came, either from the card or the camera. I Certainly did not want to eat the same dish today and honestly, I am a little tired of carbs, on arrête les féculents, let’s stop the carbs before I turn into a giant noodle!!! I have been eating more pasta and rice than usual, so I figured this crumble would fit perfectly my nutritional needs.

Ingredients for 3-4 individual crumbles

• 5 medium size tomatoes, peeled and seedless, cut in quarters
• 1 small eggplant, sliced crosswise
• 4 tbs goat cheese, crumble
• 2 tbs basil, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

For the crumble topping

• 4 tbs white flour
• 5 tbs plain bread crumbs
• 1 tsp herbes de Provence
• 1 1/2 tbs almond meal
• 1 tbs parmesan, grated
• 2 oz (or 50 g) butter
• a little salt and pepper

Preparation

Heat olive oil in a pan, add 1 garlic clove chopped, then add tomatoes, cook for about 5 minutes until the tomatoes are starting to become soft but not mushy. In a grill pan, grill eggplant on both sides. You can also sprinkle them with olive oil, salt and pepper and broil them under broiler.

Start making crumble topping. In a mixing bowl, mix all ingredients together, then add butter and mix from tip of the fingers to make a crumbly dough.

In individual molds, add tomaotes, eggplant and basil. Top with goat cheese and crumble topping.

Cook in a pre-heated oven at 370F for about 30 minutes or until the top has turned golden.

Serve hot with a green salad.