Four hundred grams of fresh raspberries under a crumble topping made with Bordier's roasted buckwheat butter and almond flour. This is the simplest dessert in our Bordier series and the one where the butter is most obviously the point: there is no spice, no vanilla, nothing else doing any flavoring work. The toasted buckwheat in the butter meets almond and sugar in the topping, and everything underneath is raspberry and lemon. It takes about ten minutes to assemble and 25 in the oven, and it serves four.
At a glance
- Difficulty: Easy
- Serves: 4
- Active time: About 10 minutes (our estimate, Bordier does not state one)
- Cook: 25 minutes
- Key ingredient: Bordier Buckwheat Butter
Why this works
The buckwheat butter came into the Bordier range in 2016, from an idea by a Breton chef. Buckwheat, or sarrasin, is one of the two things Brittany is built on alongside butter, and roasting the grains before folding them into the butter gives you something closer to toasted hazelnut than to cereal. It is not a subtle butter, and in a crumble that is an advantage. A plain butter crumble tastes of sugar and browned flour, while this one tastes of roasted grain from the first bite.
The technique is the same rubbing-in method as a shortbread, with one important difference: you want the mixture to stay loose and clumpy rather than come together into a dough. Equal weights of flour, sugar and almond flour give you a topping that is short and sandy rather than cakey, because the almond brings fat and no gluten. Tossing the raspberries in lemon juice before they go into the dish does two things, keeping the fruit bright against the sweetness of the topping and drawing out just enough juice to bubble up through the crumble at the edges.
Ingredients
Four equal 100 g weights make this an easy recipe to remember and to scale.
| Ingredient | Metric | US |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 100 g | 3 1/2 oz, about 3/4 cup |
| Sugar | 100 g | 3 1/2 oz, about 1/2 cup |
| Almond powder, or almond flour | 100 g | 3 1/2 oz, about 1 cup |
| Bordier Buckwheat Butter | 100 g | 3 1/2 oz, about 7 tbsp |
| Fresh raspberries | 400 g | 14 oz, about 3 1/4 cups |
| Lemon | 1 | 1 |
Method
Step 1: Rub the crumble and dress the fruit
Combine the flour, sugar and almond powder in a large bowl. Cut the buckwheat butter into small cubes and add it, then work everything together with your fingertips until the mixture breaks into crumbs with a sandy texture. Separately, toss the raspberries gently with the juice of half the lemon.
Step 2: Assemble and bake
Hold back a few raspberries for serving. Spread the rest across the bottom of a baking dish, then scatter the crumble mixture over them, taking care not to press down and crush the fruit. Bake for 25 minutes and take it out once the topping is golden brown.
Step 3: Serve
Give each plate a scoop of lemon ice cream and grate lemon zest over the top. Cider is the drink Bordier suggests alongside this raspberry crumble. The recipe also works with Madagascar vanilla butter if you want to vary it.
Tips from our kitchen
- Bordier does not give an oven temperature. The source page states 25 minutes of baking but no heat setting. We bake ours at 180 C (350 F), which browns the topping in about that time without drying the fruit. Treat that number as our guidance rather than Bordier's.
- Use the butter cold and stop rubbing early. The moment the mixture stops looking like crumbs and starts looking like dough, you have gone too far, and the topping will bake into a solid lid instead of a loose, crisp layer. Uneven lumps are good.
- Scatter, do not pack. Pressing the crumble down crushes the raspberries, and the juice they release will steam the topping from below and leave it pale and soft in the middle.
- Frozen raspberries work, with one adjustment. Use them straight from the freezer without thawing, and expect an extra five minutes in the oven. Thawed berries shed far too much liquid.
- Almond powder is almond flour. Bordier's poudre d'amandes is finely ground blanched almonds, sold in the US as almond flour or almond meal. Either works, though the finer grind gives a more even crumb.
- Let it settle for ten minutes before serving. Straight from the oven the fruit is molten and the topping slides off the spoon. A short rest lets the juices thicken enough to hold together on the plate.
How to serve it
Bordier serves this warm with a scoop of lemon ice cream and a grating of lemon zest, which is worth following exactly: the cold citrus against a hot, nutty crumble is the whole idea. Reserve a handful of raw raspberries to scatter on at the last moment for freshness against the cooked fruit. Dry Breton cider is the traditional pour. If you want to understand what else the buckwheat butter can do, our guide to Bordier butter walks through the full flavored range.
Where to buy Bordier Buckwheat Butter in the US
The French Pantry ships Bordier butter across the United States in insulated overnight packaging, straight from the workshop in Brittany.
- Churned Buckwheat Butter by Bordier (4.4 oz): roasted buckwheat folded into hand-churned Breton butter, two Breton staples in one block, created in 2016 from a Breton chef's idea.
Bordier's own note suggests making this crumble with Madagascar vanilla butter as a variation, and you can find that and the rest of the range in the Maison Bordier collection.
Frequently asked questions
How much Bordier butter do I need for this recipe?
The crumble takes 100 g and a Bordier block is 125 g (4.4 oz). One block is enough for a full crumble serving four, with a little left over.
Can I use a different Bordier butter?
Yes. Bordier specifically suggests Madagascar vanilla butter for this recipe, which gives a softer, sweeter topping. Unsalted or salted butter also work if you want a plain crumble, though you lose the roasted grain note that makes this version distinctive.
Can I use different fruit?
The proportions here are written for 400 g of fresh raspberries and the lemon is there to balance them. Other soft fruit will bake in the same time, but treat that as a departure from the recipe rather than part of it.
How should I store the butter?
Refrigerate it in its wrapper with the paper folded back over the cut face. Cube it straight from the refrigerator for the crumble, since cold butter is what gives you the texture.
Does the butter need to be refrigerated?
Yes. Bordier butter is a fresh, hand-churned product and ships cold. Put it in the refrigerator as soon as it arrives.
Can I make the crumble topping ahead?
Yes. Rub it together, keep it in a bag in the freezer, and scatter it over the fruit straight from frozen. It bakes just as well and saves you the messiest step on the night.
Related reading
- Bordier Butter: What It Is, Why Chefs Love It, and How to Use It
- Madagascar Vanilla Butter Brioche
- How to Choose Your French Butter: A Buyer's Guide
Recipe and photograph adapted from Maison Bordier, with thanks. The French Pantry is an authorized US retailer of Bordier butter.