What is a “crumble” anyway? A crumble differs from a pie or a cobbler as it has no dough on the top or bottom. A crumble topping is made from flour, oats, sugar, and butter, and that’s it! (For a brief history
of the crumble, see below in Variations and Substitutions). Combining the crisp and crusty crumble with the sweet, plump, and juicy blueberries placed together in a cast iron skillet, then baked over coals in a Weber Kettle is an impressive and enjoyable cooking and eating experience.
Why You Should Try Smoked Blueberry Crumble
- The most important reason to try this recipe is – The incredible sweet, bursting juiciness of the blueberry filling combined with the crunchy nutty goodness of the crumble make this blueberry crumble recipe a most exquisite and delightful guilty pleasure to devour.
- Easy and fun to prepare – Just a few simple ingredients in the blueberry filling and the crumble topping make this blueberry crumble recipe easy to follow and assemble. And it is so simple and fun to prepare (and delicious!) that you will look forward to making this blueberry crumble recipe over and over again.
- No baking skills needed – If you are not an accomplished home baker with years of experience, do not despair. We are not even making and rolling out a pie dough here. Just mix the crumble ingredients together, sprinkle over the blueberries “et voila,” your incredible dessert is ready to cook.
Ingredients For Weber Kettle Grill Blueberry Crumble
For the blueberry filling:
- 2 pounds fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
For the crumble topping:
- 1 cup flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) COLD unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- ½ cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 cup sliced almonds, divided by two
- 2 tablespoons of butter, one for the skillet, one for the almonds
Directions For Making Weber Kettle & Cast Iron Skillet Blueberry Crumble
1. Set up your Weber Kettle for indirect smoking – Fill your charcoal chimney fire starter with charcoal briquettes, and when ready, empty the chimney in the center of the charcoal grate. With tongs, move the charcoal to both sides of the Weber Kettle, creating two equal piles. Add three more charcoal briquets and one piece of wood to each pile.
2. For the filling, mix the blueberries with the lemon juice and lemon zest – In a large bowl, thoroughly mix together the blueberries with the lemon juice and lemon zest.
3. Combine the rest of the filling ingredients with the blueberries – In a small bowl combine the flour, sugar and cinnamon, then pour over the blueberries and thoroughly mix together. Rub the cast iron skillet with butter and pour the blueberries into the skillet.
4. For the crumble topping, combine in a food processor – Place the flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the COLD butter and pulse the food processor until the butter is the size of peas.
5. Place the topping mixture in a bowl – Place the crumble topping mixture in a bowl and add the oats and half of the almond. Mix them together with your hands to make a chunky topping.
6. Spread the crumble topping over the blueberries – In the cast iron skillet, using your hands, evenly spread the crumble topping over the blueberries.
7. Place the cast iron skillet on the Weber Kettle – Place the cast iron skillet in the center of the Weber Kettle and close the lid. Cook the blueberry crumble for approximately 40 minutes. Add more charcoal briquets to both piles of coals as the coals burn down, if necessary.
8. Sauté the remaining almonds – In a small skillet, add a tablespoon of butter and sauté the remaining almonds until golden brown. After the crumble has smoked for 30 minutes, sprinkle the sautéed almonds on top of the crumble. Continue smoking for another 10 minutes.
9. How do you know when the blueberry crumble is done? – The blueberry crumble is finished cooking when the blueberries are bubbling around the edges of the skillet, and the crumble topping is golden brown and firm to the tough. Push a butter knife in the center of the blueberry crumble, and if it comes out hot to the touch, then it is cooked through.
10. Remove the cast iron skillet from the Weber Kettle – With oven mitts, carefully remove the cast iron skillet to your stovetop in the kitchen and let it rest for at least 15 minutes. Be very careful, as it will be super hot!
Variations And Substitutions For Weber Kettle & Cast Iron Skillet Blueberry Crumble
The crumble is a strange variation of baked fruit dishes – A pie has rolled or pressed dough on the bottom and top. A cobbler has just the dough on top. A crumble has no dough at all but a combination of flour, sugar, oats, and butter mixed together and sprinkled on top. Of course, pies and cobblers have been around since baking began centuries ago, but the crumble is a fairly new creation. During World War II, flour was rationed in the United States and became very scarce, but Americans still wanted their favorite fruit pies. So, the “crumble” was invented, caught on, and became very popular. And it is so easy to make that you really don’t need any baking skills to make it.
Experiment with other fruit fillings – Any fruit filling used in a pie will do very well with this crumble recipe. Apple, peach, blackberry, strawberry, cherry, and pear are all wonderful options for the fruit filling. Just remember that with a blueberry crumble, there are no steps to prepare the fruit, except to wash and drain the blueberries. That is why this recipe is so simple and fun to make. There is no slicing, no peeling, and no cooking the fruit!
Try using other topping ingredients – This is a fun and inventive option. Since the crumble topping is very simple to make, it also lends itself to easy substitutions. Adding graham crackers, rolled oats, or even chocolate or peanut butter will liven up the crumble. For a savory touch, add ginger, cloves, allspice, or nutmeg. And any type of nut, like pecans, walnuts, pistachios, or macadamia nuts, will be a wonderful and inspiring addition.
Tips And Tricks For Weber Kettle & Cast Iron Skillet Blueberry Crumble
Use a Weber Kettle hinged grilling grate – The hinged portion of the grill grate on both sides lifts up so you can add more charcoal or wood chips as you need to. This is an incredible game changer because you don’t need to lift the entire grill grate off the Weber Kettle every time you need to add more fuel.
Why does this blueberry crumble recipe work so well with a cast iron skillet? – The Weber Kettle is designed to act like a grilling oven. And when we use indirect grilling, the kettle and lid get very hot. So, to this masterful combination, we are adding a cast iron skillet filled with the blueberry crumble ingredients that will also absorb the heat. The combination of the fire, the kettle, and the cast iron skillet allows the blueberry crumble to cook efficiently, consistently, and quickly.
We saved the best tip for last – Can you say, “Ice Cream?” I thought you could! A few scoops of vanilla ice cream added on top of a slice of the warm blueberry crumble is just a match made in heaven. As the ice cream melts into the blueberry crumble, the flavor combination is really an incredible treat. Can you also say, “Whipped Cream?” I thought you could!
Smoked Blueberry Crumble
Equipment
- 1 Weber Kettle Grill
- 1 Cast Iron Skillet (12" diameter)
- 1 Charcoal Chimney Fire Starter
- 1 Pair Oven Mitts
Ingredients
For the blueberry filling:
- 2 pounds fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
For the crumble topping:
- 1 cup flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 stick, 8 tablespoons COLD unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- ½ cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 cup sliced almonds, divided by two
- 2 tablespoons butter, one for the skillet, one for the almonds
Instructions
Directions For Making Weber Kettle & Cast Iron Skillet Blueberry Crumble
- Set up your Weber Kettle for indirect smoking – Fill your charcoal chimney fire starter with charcoal briquettes, and when ready, empty the chimney in the center of the charcoal grate. With tongs, move the charcoal to both sides of the Weber Kettle, creating two equal piles. Add three more charcoal briquets and one piece of wood to each pile.
- For the filling, mix the blueberries with the lemon juice and lemon zest – In a large bowl, thoroughly mix together the blueberries with the lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Combine the rest of the filling ingredients with the blueberries – In a small bowl combine the flour, sugar and cinnamon, then pour over the blueberries and thoroughly mix together. Rub the cast iron skillet with butter and pour the blueberries into the skillet.
- For the crumble topping, combine in a food processor – Place the flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse the food processor until the butter is the size of peas.
- Place the topping mixture in a bowl – Place the crumble topping mixture in a bowl and add the oats and half of the almond. Mix them together with your hands to make a chunky topping.
- Spread the crumble topping over the blueberries – In the cast iron skillet, using your hands, evenly spread the crumble topping over the blueberries.
- Place the cast iron skillet on the Weber Kettle – Place the cast iron skillet in the center of the Weber Kettle and close the lid. Cook the blueberry crumble for approximately 40 minutes. Add more charcoal briquets to both piles of coals as the coals burn down, if necessary.
- Sauté the remaining almonds – In a small skillet, add a tablespoon of butter and sauté the remaining almonds until golden brown. After the crumble has smoked for 30 minutes, sprinkle the sautéed almonds on top of the crumble. Continue smoking for another 10 minutes.
- How do you know when the blueberry crumble is done? – The blueberry crumble is finished cooking when the blueberries are bubbling around the edges of the skillet, and the crumble topping is golden brown and firm to the tough. Push a butter knife in the center of the blueberry crumble, and if it comes out hot to the touch, then it is cooked through.
- Remove the cast iron skillet from the Weber Kettle – With oven mitts, carefully remove the cast iron skillet to your stovetop in the kitchen and let it rest for at least 15 minutes. Be very careful, as it will be super hot!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
