Classic Apple Crisp
With all the apple recipes out there, it's amazing how difficult it is to find a good, basic apple crisp. You know, one of those recipes you're desperately seeking (along with applesauce) when you've just gone to the orchard with the kids, and they enthusiastically filled two very large bags with apples.
While this version of apple crisp may seem daunting, with a fairly long list of ingredients, many are simply optional enhancements. Basically, you're looking at apples, sugar, thickener, and a touch of spice in the filling; and flour, sugar, butter, oats, and cinnamon in the topping.
Ingredients
Filling
- 3 pounds whole apples, to yield 2 pounds peeled, cored, and sliced apples; about 9 cups
- 1/4 cup rum, apple cider or juice, or the liquor/juice of your choice; or water
- 1/4 to 3/4 cup brown sugar, depending on the sweetness/tartness of your apples
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 tablespoons boiled cider, optional but good
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Apple Pie Spice; or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg + 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 tablespoons King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or tapioca flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Topping
- 3/4 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup quick oats
- heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup brown sugar, light or dark
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) cold butter, cut in pats
- 1/2 cup diced pecans or walnuts, optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9" x 9" square cake pan, or similar-size casserole pan.
- Slice the apples about 1/4" thick. Toss them with the remaining filling ingredients, and spread them in the pan.
- To make the topping, whisk together the flour, oats, salt, sugar, cinnamon, and baking powder.
- Add the cold butter, working it in to make an unevenly crumbly mixture. Stir in the nuts, if you're using them.
- Spread the topping over the apples in the pan.
- Set the pan on a parchment- or foil-lined cookie sheet, to catch any potential drips. Bake the crisp for about 60 minutes, till it's bubbling and the top is golden brown.
- Remove it from the oven, and allow it to cool for at least 20 minutes before serving. If you serve the crisp hot/warm, it may be quite soft. If you wait till it's completely cool, it'll firm up nicely. A good compromise is to wait for it to cool completely, then reheat individual portions briefly in the microwave. Vanilla ice cream is a tasty accompaniment.
- Yield: 9 to 12 servings.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size 1/12th pan (130g)
- Servings Per Batch 12
Amount Per Serving:
- Calories 250
- Calories from Fat 90
- Total Fat 10g
- Saturated Fat 6g
- Trans Fat 0g
- Cholesterol 25mg
- Sodium 55mg
- Total Carbohydrate 37g
- Dietary Fiber 2g
- Sugars 25g
- Protein 2g
* The nutrition information provided for this recipe is determined by the ESHA Genesis R&D software program. Substituting any ingredients may change the posted nutrition information.
Tips from our bakers
- To make individual crisps, grease eight 8-ounce capacity baking dishes, and proceed with the recipe accordingly, baking the smaller crisps for 45 to 55 minutes.
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Reviews
So yummy! It is pretty's sweet, so I feel the sugar can be lowered a bit, if desired. I used the boiled cider and it added a nice touch. I used apples that weren't the freshest to try to use them up and no one was the wiser. Still had delicious flavor, and a nice crispy crunch to the topping. I mixed pecans into the topping, as well as a handful of halves over the top before baking.
This is the recipe I have been searching for forever. I used a combination of McIntosh apples and Honey Crisp apples with pecans in the topping. This is the best recipe for apple crisp I have ever tasted. The flavor was amazing and everyone loved it. Superb!
I needed to make this gluten-free, so I used gluten-free flour in the topping and the apples. I would use tapioca in the apples as a thickener instead. I have made much simpler apple crisp recipes with less sugar and less butter that came out amazing and much healthier. I would prefer a healthy version of this recipe. Note I followed the recipe exactly except for using gluten-free flour.We're sorry this recipe didn't quite hit the spot for you, Kathy! If you search our site for "gluten-free apple crisp," you'll actually find a recipe that is both designed to be gluten-free and requires less sugar than this more traditional recipe. We think you might find it's just what you're looking for. Happy baking! Kat@KAF
Best Ever!!!! Have made it numerous times and it's absolutely delicious every time!!! Have even been out of certain ingredients and it still came out beautifully. Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!!
Outstanding recipe. I made and then used my own boiled apple cider (syrup) for inclusion in the filing - it provided a more intense (and delicious) apple flavor. I used a combination of granny smith, golden delicious, and honeycrisp apples, which held their shape well during baking. Note: 1/2 cup of brown sugar added to these apples made the filing a bit too sweet for my taste. I served the crisp with homemade vanilla ice cream. Oh joy! Rapture!
Made this Apple Crisp for Thanksgiving since I didn't have time to make pies. It was easy to make, pretty to look at, and tasted divine. Highly recommend including the boiled cider. Some guests added ice cream, some added whipped cream - perfect either way.
Really delicious! Better than any other apple crisp recipe I've tried. I have a question, thoughcan I bake it ahead without the topping, then when I'm ready to serve, add the topping and reheat the crisp? If so, can you give me some guidance on temperature and time?Hi Andria, we think this make-ahead method should work out just fine. You might consider increasing the thickener by 1/4 teaspoon per cup of fruit since your crisp is going to go through two bakes, and the longer the fruit and sugar are left to sit together, the more juice is released by the fruit. If you give this a try, increase the flour or tapicoa starch by 2 1/4 teaspoons to ensure the final texture of the crisp is just right. Try baking the filling at 350°F for about 30-40 minutes and then letting it cool to room temperature before wrapping and putting in the fridge. Finish the bake by adding the crisp topping and baking until golden brown, another 20 to 25 minutes. (You can use the broiler setting, being very careful not to burn the top, if needed.) Good luck! Kye@KAF
I have made this a half (bakers) dozen times, and when i do not experiment or waver too far from the recipe; it is superb. I recommend the chopped pecans on top of the crust as a last addition for a wonderful toasted nutty flavor. I almost enjoy this more than a traditional apple pie; almost.
I did not have apple cider, rum, or nuts (used 1/4c of water). Used regular all-purpose flour and rolled oats (it's what I had in pantry). Also baked this in a round 9-inch casserole dish. Oh, and we used Idareds because we picked and brought home a 17lb bag from a local orchard! Aside from the absence of specific ingredients, I followed the recipe exactly. I'm letting it cool for 40 or so minutes to let it get really thick (or at least see how thick it gets lol). I had a few bites because I couldn't help myself and it's scrumptious. There is so much butter in this, it's definitely a once a year event lolol. Thanks for sharing a great recipe. When I make this again, I hope I have the specific ingredients that I was missing/substituting this time. :)
YUMMY! Will have to get an apple corer/peeler next time as that took the most time. Otherwise easy, everyone asked for more.
