I’m not sure why I always through crumbles needed to be sweet. Is it because I’m usually eating them weekly smack dab in the middle of summer? Probably. But last month in Paris we stopped by a lovely little shop and café for lunch where Adam ordered a Zucchini Crumble, a small dish of tender eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes and onions topped with a savory buttery topping and a sprinkle of fresh herbs. Its simplicity astounded me, its flavor surprised me. And the door to enjoying a different type of crumble was opened and we’re already looking forward to repeating this dish with autumn’s delicious butternut squash or even tender roasted root veggies. It’s simple, satisfying, and makes a wonderful lunch.
Vegetable Crumble
5 cups mixed vegetables (zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant), chopped rough, ½ inch
3 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of pepper
butter for greasing pan
Crumble Topping:
½ cup all purpose flour
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ cubes
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 teaspoon cold water
Heat oven to 375˚ F. Mix vegetables, tomatoes, onions, garlic, olive oil and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Place in a greased 9 by 9 inch baking dish or in individual gratin dishes.
In a bowl, mix the flour, butter, salt, pepper, and thyme and rub the mixture together with your hands. It should be crumbly and sandy, not overly mixed. Sprinkle the water over the mixture and blend with a fork.
Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the vegetables and cook for 1 hour or until the vegetables are soft and the crumble topping is golden brown. Garnish with fresh thyme and serve hot.
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What a fantastic idea, Matt. Thanks so much for sharing this. And stunning photography as always. Have a good one
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I love the idea of a savory crumble. It was nice meeting you at BlogHer food!
I’ll admit I’d never considered a savory crumble, but this looks and sounds divine. So often we dump on the bread crumbs, but why not take it up to crumble status? I’ll definitely give this a go for an easy dinner.
I thought I saw you in the airport on the way back from SF (but without the tattoos). Still, though, I probably stared too long at the poor guy because I kept trying to find his husband.
What a terrific idea! Crumbles are so easy but I’ve never considered taking them to the savory side. Gorgeous top down shot too!
I could definitely handle vegetables this way!
Oh my, looks so good. And love the idea of a vegetable crumble. Can’t wait to make it.
Hi Matt!
What a wonderful picture… very, very nice!!
Take care, Måns
Yum! This looks fantastic! I too thought that crumbles were always supposed to be sweet. I love things that are always a complete surprise.
Well, why not a savory crumble? This is a fantastic idea! Stunning photo, as usual. Please let Adam know that his food styling session was tied in the top spot (with Todd and Diane) for the best session of the conference.
Wow, total money! Consider this dish stolen for my banquets this summer. I also love the styling of the photo. The small little frying pans do the trick, and it reminds me of a rustic setting somewhere in the mountains with the fireplace roaring after a refreshing hike in the woods. Man, I miss those days.
I am thinking that a nice ratatouille underneath the crumble would be money, and perhaps bulkin it up with some portabella mushrooms. Wow, now I just made myself salivate!
This idea is basically genius. And since we can’t all go to Paris, thanks for sharing! I’ll definitely be trying this.
my my wonderful picture loving the crumbles
Hi, can you please call the owner over. I want to buy that casserole dish. Thanks.
I had a mixed root vegetable crumble at a restaurant in Bordeaux last year. Must be a French thing!
That photo is gorgeous. I love vegetable gratins – awesome way to dress up produce differently than usual – and get me to finish my CSA box. Is a savory crumble a gratin made with a flour and butter mixture as opposed to a bread crumb and butter/oil mixture?
What a great idea, and certainly not something I’ve ever seen before!
Now THIS is a fine idea, long overdue.
Lovely idea – I think I’ll try a butternut squash version tonight – sage could be a good addition too.
a savory crumble? brilliant! this has just been added to this weeks meals!
My goodness, that sounds heavenly. Will put it on the menu for later this week. Thanks!
Ooohh….will try this dish soon!
Man, this is one of those things where you say, ‘Huh, why didn’t I think of that before?’ Looks delicious, will definitely try it soon!
This looks so tasty! And, seriously, why not a savory crumble…Love it! I hope the kids love it too
I found your blog through Goop! I just made a vegetable crumble tonight – Sally, I used butternut squash, celery, onion, thyme, sage (that’s what I had)… and a whole wheat crust. Thanks for the wonderful idea. It was so simple, yet made dinner feel extra special because I’d never even thought of a savory crumble! We loved it. I’m sure to make it again over the fall and winter. So cozy.
Vegetable Crumble. I love it. I’m going to try this out in a few days. Thanks for sharing this with us.
This is a an amazing idea for fall. Grandma used to make something similar after a long day in the fields. It is great with layers of caramelized onions as well. Thanks for sharing, the photos are always fantastic!
Well Matt, I didn’t believe that I could enjoy a vegetable crumble. This is a WOW! I made it tonight after a long day and I am so happy that I did. The only tweek I made – only because at 10pm I discovered that I didn’t have all-purpose flour – so I used bread flour. I’m licking my plate right now. Everyone should try this. So easy and taste so very FANTASTIC.
this looks so goo..
I hope post more articles
i keep seeing these tasty things on your blog, Da$&% your recipes and your great photography!
Why have I never thought to do a savory crumble before? Thanks for implanting this awesome idea in my head. This looks wonderful!
Sounds and looks incredible!
Such a great idea! Kind of a different take on the gratin, in a way?
I think instead of a ½ cup all purpose flour I will try a ½ cup of Italian bread crumbs.
I like this recipe so much!
I’d always pictured crumbles as sweet too, but this is such a fabulous idea. I can’t wait to try it. Thank you so much for sharing!
You are the Best! <3
It sounds and looks delicious. I guess there is no reason why a crumble has to be sweet.
I wonder if you could let it cool in the fridge and then serve it as a nice cool mid-day snack, like you would a quiche.
What a brilliant concept! Can’t wait to try it!
This recipe looks great. I need to try vegetables in a different way. We usually just cook them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Nothing special but it makes them taste good and we get our daily vegetable allowance but this sounds like a more interesting and delicious way to do it.
wow, this looks fantastic. Like a pot pie…but a bit healthier, because there’s less crust and such. warm veggies are the best and perfect for fall!
Matt, I think that’s a recipe I could actually succeed at making! Yum! Can’t wait for my first bite of veggie crumble!
I am so sad that I was not able to meet you at BlogHer Food … I was searching everywhere for you, hehe… Matt, this recipe looks incredible and it surely is on my agenda to create this weekend.
Thank you for the beautiful recipe and photographs; you are such an inspiration and I truly hope to meet you in the near future. Keep up the fabulously delicious bakin’ and cookin’…I’m a huge fan of all your ‘bites’.
Enjoy your evening…hope to cross foodie paths soon.
Best,
Amie
I MADE THIS LAST NIGHT IT WAS SOOO GOOD. I DID ADD A LITTLE ITALIAN DRESSING TO THE VEGGIS AND IT WAS WONDERFUL.. THANKS FOR THE GREAT RECIPIE
i added the same italian dressing na==and a bit of lemon – was very good -thanks again
So good I made it twice this week! Added mushrooms and a dash of parmesan to the crust for the last 10 min of baking. This is going on the roster- such a no brainer!
i’ve made this three times now in the past week and shared it with friends…
some variations:
1. with varicolor squash and eggplant
2. with eggplant, broccoli, and bell peppers
3. with broccoli, bell peppers, zucchini, and serrano chilies
also abandoned the flour/butter and went with italian breadcrumbs/o.o (to me this seemed healthier?) and matt, the spicier i make this, the better it gets! i’ve been adding healthy doses of tabasco, and man: what. a. dish.
love, love, love this blog.
It is in the oven and I am looking forward to dinner tonight!
I also went with breadcrumbs for the topping.
I used a butternut squash, a handful of the green beans that I had frozen from this summer, some fresh broccoli, some of the shredded zucchini bread mixture that I had frozen from last summer (when I am harvesting the zucchini I just take it and shred it all into 2 cup portions into freezer bags, if I have some leftover carrots I add that along with the zucchini, these are great for adding to a huge variety of dishes or when I want to make some quick bread).
I also added some chopped walnuts to the topping and sprinkled a tiny bit of feta cheese with the veggies.
I just thought that maybe some bacon in the topping next time…
I am going to a friend’s house for dinner next week and I am going to make one of these, I want it to look a little less rustic, so I think I will cut the veggies into rounds so I can shingle them into the pan and make for a beautiful presentation to my host.
Back in 03, when Crescent Dragonwagon “Passionate Vegetarian” first made me aware of this idea, I at first dismissed it… Now it is a breakfast favorite! Great way to use up leftovers, too. Oh, and they reheat so well in the microwave! Thanks for a further take on her idea.
You’re very welcome and yes, it’s such a great use of leftovers! My recipe is based on a dish from a café in Paris, I’m definitely going to need to check out Crescent’s version…. I do love her so
This looks amazing, Matt! What kind of pan are the crumbles set on? They look like de Buyer, am I right?