Why Your Fruit Crumble Turned Out Dry

In the great debate of best desserts, one that often gets left out is the classic crumble. Yes, cakes and pies are great, and they're not going anywhere anytime soon. A nice crumble though is a great, fruit-forward option for those looking to change things up. The crumble — not to be confused with the crisp, cobbler, or brown betty — is a fruit dessert topped with brown sugar streusel that sometimes contains rolled oats (via Blue Flame Kitchen).

Because the defining trait of the crumble is its crust, it's important to get it right. There are plenty of different recipes and variations out there, but the one thing that can ruin any of them, according to Southern Living, is having a crust that comes out too dry. That ooey-gooey fruit filling will help out a little bit, but you still need to make sure your crust isn't an inedible rock.

Southern Living's remedy for an overly dry crust is to add more butter to the crust. It recognizes that there are a few different methods for adding butter to the crust, but says that if your crust is frequently too dry, adding more butter before baking makes for an easy fix.

In our Apple Pear Crisp recipe, we recommend melting the butter down to coat the oats and walnuts as well. And, if the dessert is still too dry, Southern Living says to add a tablespoon of melted butter over the top of the crust before baking. 

Food How recommends doing this in small doses to avoid adding too much, and risking a soggy crust. Simply try adding an extra tablespoon each time you bake a crumble until you've found the perfect texture for your crust. The New York Times also has method where the crust is actually baked separately to provide an extra layer of moisture control to help find the perfect texture without the filling interfering.