Apple Crisp

This apple crisp is one of my favorite fall and winter desserts recipes. A sweet cinnamon apple filling is layered with the best oat crumble topping and baked until golden. It comes out of the oven perfectly warm and tastes even better with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!

When you don’t want to go through the process of making apple pie, this apple crisp recipe is the next best thing — or in my opinion, even better. Not only is it much easier to make, but I love how you get some of the crumbly topping with the sweet cinnamon glazed apples in every bite.

I make this (and my baked apples) regularly when apple season hits, but it’s also a non-negotiable Thanksgiving dessert. It’s comforting, perfectly sweet, and even better with a scoop of melty vanilla ice cream or a drizzle of warm custard on top.

This apple crisp recipe is a dessert winner during the cold weather months, and when summertime rolls back around, I make this berry crisp. You really can’t go wrong with fruit crisp recipes year round!

Apple Crisp Ingredients

1. Use tart apples. I love using tart apples for baking (like Granny Smith apples) since they’re extra crisp and balance any sweetness. They’re also firm enough to hold up to longer baking times in the oven. The apples then get mixed with a little maple syrup for sweetness and lemon juice for freshness.
2. Any form of starch will work. I’m using arrowroot powder to thicken up the glaze in the apple filling, but you could also use cornstarch.
3. The crumbly topping. It’s a simple combination of almond flour, coconut sugar, ground cinnamon, and kosher salt. Almond flour adds a delicious nuttiness and coconut sugar imparts a slight caramel undertone. But you could swap in regular flour and any granulated sugar if you prefer.
4. Rolled oats are the best. Old fashioned rolled oats are stirred into the topping to give the apple crisp that delicious crumbly texture. But if you only have quick-cooking oats, you can use those instead.

How To Make Apple Crisp

Prep the apples. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Then peel, core, and slice the apples. You can do this by hand or use this Johnny Apple peeler for an all-in-one tool!

Make the fruit base. In a large bowl, toss together the apples, maple syrup, arrowroot flour, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and cinnamon, until well combined.

Place in baking dish. Transfer the apple mixture to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish and spread it into an even layer.

Make the apple crisp topping. Whisk together the almond flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a separate medium bowl. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut in the butter until the mixture becomes crumbly. Then, stir in the rolled oats.

Add the topping. Sprinkle the apple crisp evenly over the sliced apples in the baking dish.

Bake until golden. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the topping is lightly golden brown and the apples are soft and tender.

Common Questions

Can you make this dairy-free?

Can you make this ahead of time?

Storage Tips

Apple Crisp Recipe

This apple crisp recipe is the best fall and winter dessert with a sweet cinnamon apple filling and oat crumble topping. It's also a Thanksgiving dessert favorite! ...

Servings 6 servings

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

1x

For the fruit base

• 8 Granny Smith apples
• ⅓ cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot flour or cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the apple crisp topping

• 1 cup almond flour
• ½ cup coconut sugar or other granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

2x

For the fruit base

• 16 Granny Smith apples
• 0.67 cup maple syrup
• 4 tablespoons arrowroot flour or cornstarch
• 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the apple crisp topping

• 2 cup almond flour
• 1 cup coconut sugar or other granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 0.5 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
• 2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

3x

For the fruit base

• 24 Granny Smith apples
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 6 tablespoons arrowroot flour or cornstarch
• 3 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 3 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the apple crisp topping

• 3 cup almond flour
• 1.5 cup coconut sugar or other granulated sugar
• 1.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 0.75 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1.5 cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
• 3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

Instructions

 

• Prep the apples. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Then peel, core, and slice the apples.
  
• Make the fruit base. In a large bowl, toss together the apples, maple syrup, arrowroot powder, lemon juice, vanilla, and cinnamon, until well combined.
  
• Place in baking dish. Transfer the apple mixture to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
  
• Make the apple crisp topping. In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Using a pastry cutter or fork, cut in the butter until the mixture becomes crumbly. Then stir in the rolled oats.
  
• Add the topping and bake. Sprinkle the apple crisp evenly over the sliced apples in the baking dish. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the apples are soft.
  
• Serve. Scoop a portion out and serve warm. You can also add a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream on top.
  

Notes

Tips

• How I prep this for Thankgiving: I’ve gotten a lot of questions about this, so here’s what I do. I make the topping ahead of time and store it in the fridge. Then, as soon as the turkey comes out of the oven, I slice the apples with the Johnny apple peeler (linked above), toss with the maple syrup, vanilla, etc, add the topping, and pop it in the oven. That only takes about 15 minutes with the peeler. Also, keep in mind that a turkey needs to rest for 30 min before serving. Then, dinner will likely take at least 30 minutes. So you have plenty of time to assemble this while the turkey is resting, and it can cook in the oven while everyone is eating dinner. When it’s time for dessert, a warm apple crisp will be ready to serve up! Just remember to set a timer so you don’t forget about it in the oven. 😉

Calories:

Course: Dessert Recipes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Apple Crisp, Apple Crisp Recipe, Apple Crumble