Streusel problems

[StevenC]

So, I have this nice-tasting recipe for pumpkin pie with ginger streusel. Everything works well except for the streusel, which always comes out dull and flat:

The recipe I used has the following proportions, by volume:

4 parts flour

2 parts walnuts

2 parts brown sugar

2 parts soft butter

1 part ground candied ginger

You bake it at 350F (175C) for 25 minutes.

I'd like something that looks more cragged and livelier.

Any suggestions???? Other recipes seem all over the place. A German recipe on egullet has equal proportions (by weight) of flour, ground almonds and butter, with almost twice the proportion of sugar. Another recipe I saw has a 4:3:2:1 ratio (by volume) of flour to sugar to ground nuts to butter.

Another thing: I'm also thinking of adding dried milk powder to the dough to improve the browning. Thoughts?

Edited November 19, 2010 by StevenC (log)

[baroness]

Add/substitute in some rolled oats (preferably toasted) for some of the flour for 'more cragged;' you could also use larger pieces of nuts...I would do pecans with pumpkin, not walnuts.

I would be concerned about the flavor of the dried milk (ick); the butter and sugar should create browning.

[stuartlikesstrudel]

I wonder if white sugar would be better for structure/texture, even though the taste may not be quite as nice. I think of brown sugar as being moister and seems to make things like cookies softer. It could be that using white sugar would allow the streusel to hold its shape better, so if you make it cragged when you put it on, it might stay that way.

I agree with baroness too, I also like oats in my crumble/streusel.

[Edward J]

Actually, almost any recipie will work.

Most commercial kitchens have a utensil called a "spider" Basically a skimmer with a very course wire mesh.

Make your streusel and force it through a course wire mesh. Freeze it, dust it with more flour or sugar, freeze it again. Sprinkle "with feeling"....

Oats are nice, but for me, oat streusel only goes well with cinnamon....

[chiantiglace]

Pre-bake your streusel laid out on a sheet pan lined with parchment or silpat at 275F for about 15 minutes. After every five minutes use a spatula to break it up in pieces. Allow mixture to cool and then sprinkle on top of your pie, now bake.

[StevenC]

Interesting suggestions. I'm going to experiment with a few approaches. I'm also going to try substituting powdered sugar for half the sugar in the recipe--I'm hoping the cornstarch will have a drying effect. Part of the problem, I think, is that the recipe has you bake the pumpkin pie partially, and then you put the streusel on top and bake it for 20 minutes more. So, the steam coming up from the custard moistens the streusel.

[JTravel]

My apple pie "streusel" topping is:

1 part butter

1 part brown sugar

2 parts flour

2 parts oats, perhaps broken up a bit with stick blender

Chopped walnuts or pecans is you want

Put it on the pie when it goes in the oven, cover with a bit of foil if it gets too dark.

What I'm looking for is how to make the streusel on the left in this picture from a German bakery. I'm sure no oats, and must be white sugar. They put it on LOTS of things.

[David Israel]

What if you froze the streusel before putting it on the pie? Also, in the Pie Bible RLB--in her recipe for Apple Crumb Pie (which I'm going to try for Thanksgiving)--states, "a high oven temperature (400 degrees) is necessary to set the streusel and keep it from being greasy."