Summer Fruit Crumble with Crème Anglaise

Prepare the Fruit Filling: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). In a large bowl, combine the chopped summer fruits, granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Toss gently to coat.

Pour the fruit mixture into a 9-inch baking dish or pie plate.

Prepare the Crumble Topping: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

Add the cold butter cubes to the dry ingredients. Use a pastry blender or your fingertips to cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.

Stir in the rolled oats and chopped almonds (if using).

Sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the fruit filling.

Bake the Crumble: Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the fruit filling is bubbling.

Let the crumble cool slightly before serving.

Prepare the Crème Anglaise: In a medium saucepan, heat the heavy cream and vanilla bean (or vanilla extract) over medium heat until just simmering. Remove from heat and let steep for 15 minutes (if using vanilla bean). Remove vanilla bean.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, and salt until pale and slightly thickened.

Slowly drizzle a small amount of the hot cream into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. This prevents the eggs from scrambling.

Pour the tempered egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining cream.

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon. Do not boil! The mixture should reach a temperature of 170-175°F (77-79°C).

Strain the crème anglaise through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl. This will remove any cooked egg particles.

Let the crème anglaise cool slightly, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.

Serve: Serve the warm summer fruit crumble with a generous drizzle of chilled crème anglaise.