This slice is a happy accident which turned out utterly delicious.  I have an abundance of apples, pears and feijoas at home and I was thinking of a warming crumble for dessert.  I then decided I needed a slice for the cupboards to keep the children full over the holidays.  

The tart fruit, sweetened with the addition of dates balanced out by the layers of the crumbly crust.  This slice could certainly double as a dessert if need be.

Preparation time - 20 minutes

Cooking time - 60 minutes

Skill - easy

Makes 16 squares

Ingredients

Fruit filling

1.2 kg combination of apples, pears, feijoa, peeled and roughly chopped

¼ cup brown sugar

½ cup white sugar, plus extra for dusting

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

⅛ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

80 g dates, roughly chopped

crumble

500g flour

250g sugar

300g butter, melted

Method

Preheat the oven 180C

Line a 20x30cm slice tin with greaseproof paper.

To make the filling 

Place the peeled and chopped fruit into a medium sized saucepan.  

Add the sugars, spice and chopped dates, stir to combine.  

Add 2 Tbsp water, cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the fruit is soft and pulpy.

Remove the lid and cook for a further 2-5 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed.

To make the crumble

Combine the flour and sugar together in a bowl, stir in the melted butter and mix well to combine.

Press half the crumble into the base of the tin.  

Bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes.

To assemble

Spread the cooked fruit evenly over the base.  

Crumble over the remaining dough, sprinkle sugar lightly over the crumble.

Bake for 30  minutes.

Cool before cutting.