Apple Crisp Recipe
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This Apple Crisp Recipe is a cozy, old-fashioned dessert featuring warm, tender cinnamon apples and a buttery oat streusel topping. It’s a comforting treat that’s perfect for holidays or weeknight dinners when you want a warm, delicious dessert!
The warm and cozy apples and crunchy oat topping of this family favorite apple crisp make it a perfect comforting dessert! This recipe features sweet and tart apples that achieve a caramel flavor, complemented by a buttery streusel, for a tried-and-true dessert passed down through the generations. Perfect served on a weeknight, at Thanksgiving, and alongside holiday pies, it’s a beloved recipe that fills the house with a heavenly aroma.
Why You’ll Love This Apple Crisp Recipe
- Uses Staple Ingredients: Common pantry ingredients for an easy dessert.
- Easy to Make: Simple preparation and bakes in less than an hour.
- Egg-Free: Perfect dessert for those with dietary restrictions.
- Decadent Texture: Juicy, flavorful apples covered in crunchy oat topping.
- Tested Family Recipe: Made over generations from scratch for a trusted dessert.
- Cozy and Versatile: Perfect for a cozy family dinner, party, or on a holiday dessert table.
Ingredients for Apple Crisp
- Apples: 7 medium apples, peeled and sliced for filling.
- Lemon Juice: Enhances flavor and prevents apples from browning
- Brown sugar: Used in both the filling and topping for a rich sweetness.
- All-Purpose Flour: Used to thicken filling and as the base of the oat streusel topping.
- Cinnamon: Used in the apple filling and the topping for warmth.
- Butter: Use softened butter in both the filling and to create the rich crumble topping.
- Baking Powder: Works with the flour to soften the oat topping.
- Salt: Enhances the sweetness and flavors of apples and the topping.
- Oats: Use quick-cooking oats to create a crunchy oat streusel topping.
Optional Extra Toppings:
Top warm, freshly baked apple crisp with:
Ingredient Swaps
- Apples: Use a mix of baking, eating, and tart apples. See “Best Apples” to follow.
- Flour: Swap with gluten-free flour for a gluten-free version.
- Butter: Use vegan butter for a dairy-free version.
Best Apples for Apple Crisp
For the best flavors, a combination of apples works best.
- Baking Apples (give a soft texture): Cortland, Braeburn, and Rome
- Eating Apples (crisp, sweetness): Honeycrisp, Fuji, and Sweetango
- Tart Apples (balances flavors): Granny Smith
A combination of sweet and tart apples gives a perfect balance; all sweet may make the dessert too sweet, while all tart may not be sweet enough.
How to Make Apple Crisp
This loved dessert is simple to make with minimal steps and is baked to a fragrant, golden perfection.
Step by Step Instructions
- Preheat oven and prep baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt for topping.
- Add and combine softened butter to mixed dry ingredients with fork, pastry blender or clean fingers until crumbly.
- After the crumbly texture is gained after mixing, cover bowl and refrigerate while prepping the filling.
- Prepare apple filling in another mixing bowl by tossing peeled, sliced apples with lemon juice, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and 2 tbsp melted butter.
- Mix sliced apples and filling ingredients until apples are well-coated.
- Assemble dessert by first pouring apple filling into baking dish.
- Complete assembly of the dessert by adding chilled oat topping evenly over the apple filling in the baking dish.
- Bake 30-45 minutes until the topping is golden brown and the apples are tender. Set dish on cooling rack for 5 minutes and serve.
- Serve warm apple crisp alone or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a dollop of whipped cream, or a drizzle of caramel sauce.
Recipe Success Tips
- Use Mix of Apples: A combination of sweet and tart varieties gives the best, balanced taste.
- Evenly Sliced Apples: Create even apple slices to cook evenly.
- Chill the Topping: Refrigerate the oat streusel topping while prepping the filling to keep it crumbly.
- Don’t Overmix Topping: Combine topping just until crumbly.
- Check for Doneness: Check apples for fork-tenderness but no mushy texture.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Cool and place in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely, wrap tightly in freezer wrap and foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Reheat: Warm in the oven at 350°F for 10-15 minutes or microwave in 30-second increments.
- Make-Ahead Tip: Assemble the filling and topping separately without baking, refrigerate for up to 24 hours, then assemble and bake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Apple crisp usually has oats or nuts mixed as part of the topping, which gives a crunchy texture, but a crumble omits oats for a more flour-based topping.
Toss apples with flour and lemon juice in the recipe to thicken the filling.
Bake according to recipe instructions until the fruit filling begins to bubble around the edges and the topping is a crisp golden brown. Test a couple of apple slices for fork-tenderness, but do not cook until mushy.
More Favorite Apple and Fall Recipes
- Classic Pumpkin Pie
- Sweet Potato Casserole – great with the meal and as a dessert!
- Apple Cider
- Pecan Pie
- Apple Pie
Why This Apple Crisp is a Fall Must
This decadent comfort food dessert features caramel-like apples, topped with a rich, crisp oat topping, and is easy to prepare. Perfect for cozy holiday desserts and weeknight dinners, the aroma of this apple crisp enhances its delicious warmth.
Apple Crisp Recipe
Ingredients
- 7 medium (1,274 g) apples , peeled, cored, and sliced
- 1/4 cup (56 g) lemon juice
- 1/2 cup (107 g) brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons (22.5 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (2.6 g) ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons (56 g) butter, melted
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.65 g) kosher salt
Apple Crisp Topping:
- 1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (214 g) brown sugar
- 1 cup (82 g) quick-cooking oats
- 1 teaspoon (2.6 g) ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon (2 g) baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) kosher salt
- 1/2 cup (113 g) butter , softened
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Spray 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Apple Crisp Topping:
- Add flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt to a large bowl. Whisk together to combine. Using clean fingers, work the softened butter into the flour mixture until well combined. Chill in the refrigerator until apple filling is prepared.
Apple Crisp Filling:
- Combine apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, flour, ground cinnamon, butter, and salt in a large bowl, tossing to make sure apples are well coated. Pour into prepared casserole dish.
- Top apples with Apple Crisp Topping and bake until the apples are tender and top of apple crisp has turned golden brown, about 45 minutes.
Notes
- Store: Cool and place in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely, wrap tightly in freezer wrap and foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Freeze Without Baking:. Assemble without baking, wrap it well, cover it in an airtight freezer-safe container, and place it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bake as directed until done.
- Reheat: Warm in the oven at 350°F for 10-15 minutes or microwave in 30-second increments.
- Make-Ahead Tip: Assemble the filling and topping separately without baking, refrigerate for up to 24 hours, then assemble and bake.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Hi there! I made this last night and it was absolutely delicious!! So incredibly easy and so tasty! Loved it!
I wanted to ask if both the filling and the topping can be made separately ahead of time and kept in the fridge until ready to bake?
Jolie, I haven’t done this but I see no reason why it wouldn’t work.
I made it gluten-free by subbing in 3 tablespoons cornstarch for the flour with the apples, and then subbing 1/4 cup coconut flour and 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free biscuit mix for the flour and baking powder in the topping. Best crisp ever!!
Thanks for letting us know how you made this gluten-free, Karen. I’m so glad you liked it!
I so love apple crisp,,and always use Spies or Grannys,,,knock my socks off,,,so yummy Robyn. Eating apples with skins on is normal but in apple crisp,,,never, hate nice warm apples and the yummy topping with ice cream ,,,,then find a hard peel,,,,yuck,,, but that’s just me
Enjoy all you work you do Robyn,,,,,,
Douglas
Thank you, Douglas!
I was wondering if this can be assembled a day ahead less the topping I would like to make it for church and bake it there. The smell will make everything smell so good
Looks good , can’t wait to try it!
Hope you like it, Dorothy.
Outstanding treat. Everyone asked why I didn’t a larger serving as that everyone wanted second helpings. Also wants copy of recipe, thanks
Thanks so much Richard!
This was one of the best apple crisp recipes I have ever made. I don’t leave reviews, because I always change the recipe to my liking and don’t think it’s fair to “review” something I didn’t actually make. This recipe, however, I followed exactly and found it to be easy and delicious. I used less than fresh Granny Smith apples for the filling, which unfortunately were not that juicy, but turned out just fine. I did have a happy mistake with the salt. I use kosher salt primarily and used the wrong measuring spoon for the topping. Therefore there was a full teaspoon of salt in the topping. Realized my mistake for the filling, but the result was that salty/sweet flavor. Which was GREAT!
Thanks for a super delicious dessert!
This is wonderful to hear, Pamela! Thanks so much! xo
I made the Apple Crisp with mostly the large Gala Apples and some Macintosh / I chopped in cube size with the skin / 8 large Gala with 4 small Macintosh /
I added 4 tablespoons of ice water to the crisp topping right before I put the topping and pressed into the apples
I baked at convection for 45 min at 350 then 15 min more at 375 convection bake
I also used Bob Mills Organic Quick Cooking Oats
The Apple Crisp looks gorgeous a perfect brown color
The house smells amazing and this is an Excellent Recipe it is not to sweet.
I will probably add cornstarch for my juice and also some Ground Cloves. How much ?
I used a combination of fresh squeezed lemon juice 1/4 cup and 1/4 cup orange juice.
I used organic brown sugar
Thank You !
My notes on this crisp:
I made it once with fresh apples straight from a neighbor’s tree. They were crisp and sweet and perfect in this crisp. I brought it to a dinner and got endless compliments. The only changes I made were tossing the apple mixture with a light coating of corn starch to soak up and thicken any juices, and not putting any oil in the topping, just a personal preference and how my Mama taught me.
I made it again tonight and had a very different experience. I had a large bag of granny smiths that were almost too sour to eat so I thought to make this again. In this instance the apples were too sour and when I added lemon juice, it made it worse. The sugar wasn’t enough to counter it. I also peeled almost all of the apples and found I liked the ones with peels more. (My bad.) I didn’t add the cornstarch this time because it wasn’t in the recipe and there was a lot of juice in the pan. So I think I’ll add the cornstarch if I make it again.
Overall, very good recipe, but better with apples that are a touch sweeter than grannys. (That was my bad, but I used up my apples so it works.) She is right about leaving the peels on! Adds a nice texture and takes less time. I will add cornstarch when I make it just because of my experiences. It may not always need it. It probably depends on the apples and their water content. And I personally like using more butter vs. Oil in the topping but that’s my preference.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Lyssa! Different apples definitely can give the dish varying flavors. I’m glad you liked the apple crisp. xo
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the apple crisp, Laura. I’ve not had a problem with the topping being too dry or having too much juice before so I’m not sure what happened. The recipe calls for 8 tablespoons of butter in the topping already and you can use coconut oil instead of canola oil as listed in the recipe.
Thanks for your input!