This warm apple crisp is the ultimate cozy fall dessert with cinnamon-spiced apples topped with a crispy oat crumble. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream.
It’s fall in New York, and that means it’s apple season! Let’s make some apple crisp. This is the perfect dessert for a chilly fall day, and it’s a tried and true recipe that I’ve been using for over a decade.
Apple Crisp Recipe Overview
This recipe takes about 15-20 minutes to prep and an hour to bake. You’ll get 6-8 slices from a 9 inch pie pan.
- Apples: You’ll need 2.5 pounds, which is about 6 medium-sized apples. My favorite varieties for apple crisp are Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Fuji, or Cortland.
- Apple Pie Spice: It’s really easy to make if you don’t have this on hand. Mix together:
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon allspice
- Apple Cider Vinegar: I like to toss the sliced apples in apple cider vinegar to prevent them from browning. The acidity also helps balance the sweetness of the brown sugar. You can substitute the vinegar with lemon juice, as well.
- Brown Sugar: I always use dark brown sugar over light brown sugar, but that’s just a personal preference. I like the deep, rich flavor dark brown sugar brings to recipes.
- Flour: All-purpose flour creates the base for the crispy topping and helps thicken the filling.
- Butter: I use salted butter because I think it tastes better. You can substitute with unsalted butter and adjust the salt measurement, as needed.
- Oats: Old-fashioned rolled oats work best for this recipe but you can substitute with quick oats. However, this will produce a slightly different texture in the topping.
Tips for the Best Apple Crisp
Mise en Place
Mise en place is a French culinary term that translates to “everything in its place.” It’s the practice of prepping and organizing all your ingredients and tools before you start cooking. This method helps make sure you have everything you need so the baking experience is less stressful.
I learned this practice from watching Julia Child’s cooking show as a kid. It has stuck with me through adulthood and is the single best cooking tip I’ve ever come across.
Here is the process:
- Set Up Your Workspace: Clear and clean your countertops or workspace to have enough room to work comfortably. Don’t forget to pre-heat the oven!
- Prepare Tools: Gather all the necessary tools you’ll need:
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
- A cutting board, peeler, and knife for slicing the apples.
- A baking dish or pie pan
- A whisk and/or wooden spoon for mixing the ingredients.
- A pastry cutter or fork for cutting in the cold butter.
- An oven mitt for handling the hot pie pan.
- Gather Ingredients: Collect all the ingredients needed for the apple crisp. How many times have you started a recipe only to find you are missing an ingredient 😫.
- Measure Ingredients: Pre-measure your ingredients into separate bowls or containers.
- Follow the Recipe: Now you can follow the recipe without interruption. You won’t have to pause to find ingredients or tools so you can focus on the process and enjoy the experience of baking!
Apples
Peel and slice the apples into 1/2-inch thick pieces. They should all be about the same size so they cook evenly.
Toss the sliced apples in the apple cider vinegar to keep them from browning.
If you have a garden, save your apple peels and cores and compost them! I have vermicomposting areas inside my garden beds which makes it really easy to get rid of food scraps.
Butter
Make sure the butter is cold so it creates the crispy, crunchy pieces in the topping. Refrigerate the butter topping mixture before adding it to the filling, if necessary. Just pop it into the fridge for about 10 minutes so the butter hardens back up.
Storing Leftovers
If you have leftovers, refrigerate them in an airtight container and use within a few days. The topping will start to lose its crispy texture after a while.
You can freeze individual pieces for up to 3 months. Tightly cover the pieces in plastic wrap and tinfoil. Prevent freezer burn by using a few layers of plastic wrap to keep the air and moisture out.
Making the apple crisp ahead of time
I have never had luck with prepping this recipe ahead of time as a whole. However, you can prep the apples and the topping separately. Peel and slice the apples as directed, then immediately soak in saltwater for 10 minutes. Drain and store the apples in an air tight container in the fridge for up to a week, though I would use them within a day or two. This will keep the apples from browning and turning yucky in the fridge. Use 1/2 teaspoon of salt for every 1 cup of cold water.
I use this saltwater trick for my kids’ school lunches. I give the apples a quick rinse before packing them and they never turn brown or taste any different.
You can make the topping ahead of time but leave out the oats. Store the mixture in the fridge for a few days in an airtight container. Mix in the oats right before assembling the apple crisp to bake.
Apple Crisp
Equipment
- Pie Plate 9 inches x 1-1/3 inches
- Mixing bowls
Ingredients
Filling
- 2.5 pounds apples
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1.5 teaspoons apple pie spice
Topping
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
- 8 tablespoons cold butter cubed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and butter a 9 x 1-1/3 inch pie pan.
- Peel and slice apples into thin wedges about 1/2 an inch thick. In a medium-sized bowl, mix the sliced apples with the vinegar, apple pie spice, and granulated sugar. Pour into the buttered pie dish and set aside.
- For the topping, mix together the flour, brown sugar, salt, and oats in a large bowl. Using an electric hand mixer, combine the cold butter into the flour on low speed until crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. You could also use a fork or pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture. Spread the topping evenly over the apples.
- Bake for one hour until the top is brown and the filling is bubbly. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream (optional).
