Apple Crisp Recipe

Name: Apple Crisp Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup rolled oats; 1/2 cup all purpose flour; 1/3 cup light brown sugar; 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes and divided; 4 gala apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced; 1/2 cup light brown sugar; 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

by Teri Lyn Fisher · Published: Oct 7, 2022 · Modified: Oct 7, 2022

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A simple and delicious Apple Crisp Recipe with perfectly cooked apples and the most addicting, streusel top! We love serving it warm with big scoops of vanilla ice cream. It's one of our favorite fall desserts!

Apple crisps baked in cast iron skillets with ice cream on top.

I love apple desserts so much and this delicious Apple Crisp Recipe is one of my go to dessert recipes and favorite thing to taste when the fall season begins! It’s incredibly easy to make with a delicious hint of spice from the cinnamon and cardamom! I love enjoying this dessert warm, topped with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. It’s so hard to find a better combination!

Our recipe comes together in under an hour and you can even prep different components ahead of time to make things even easier. We made these “single serving” (although each skillet is really big enough for two people!) portions, but the recipe can easily be doubled to make in a large 10″ skillet to serve family style.

What’s the Difference Between Crisp and Crumble?

We get asked this question all the time and while they’re both baked fruit desserts, a crisp has a streusel topping that incorporates rolled oats. The rolled oats crisp up while baked, creating a slightly crunchy streusel topping. A crumble has a streusel topping without oats, so the topping tends to be more cakey and dense. Both desserts are delicious but we tend to lean a little more towards the crisp, like our Apple Crisp Recipe today!

Apple crisps being eaten with apple slices on the side.

How to Make Our Homemade Apple Crisp Recipe

Process

Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease 3 (12 ounce or 6 inch) mini skillets each with 1 tablespoon butter. Set aside.

Buttered cast iron skillets to make apple crisps.

STREUSEL

Place oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and brown sugar in a mixing bowl.
Stir together.

Apple crisps topping mixed together in a bowl.

Add butter to streusel mixture.
Cut in butter until a coarse mealy texture forms. Place the bowl in the freezer while making filling, about 10 minutes.

Apple crisp ingredients to mix in butter.

APPLE FILLING

Combine all filling ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
Toss together until thoroughly mixed.

Apple crisp filling ingredients in a bowl.

Apple crisp filling mixed together in a bowl.

ASSEMBLE

Divide filling mixture into prepared skillets and set aside.
Remove streusel from freezer. Divide streusel between skillets in an even layer, covering apples.

Apple crisps filling in cast iron skillets.

Place crisps onto a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool apple crisps for 7 to 10 minutes before serving (with a scoop of ice cream, which is our favorite way to serve our crisps!)

Tools You Will Need

Best Apples To Use For Apple Crisps

The best apples to use for apple crisps are apples that hold up well when baked. We love using gala apples because their crispness allows them to hold up to baking recipes, while the natural, mellow sweet flavor allows you to use less sugar overall. More apples that we love using for our apple crisp recipe are:

pink lady – firm texture with light sweetness
granny smith – hearty, firm and tart
honeycrisp -firm, crisp and sugary sweet
jonagolds – firm flesh with a tangy, tart sweetness

Make Ahead and Freezing Instructions for Our Apple Crisp Recipe

Make Ahead

The streusel for the apple crisp can be made up to 5 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When ready to use, fluff with a fork until back to a mealy texture and sprinkle over apple filling.

The entire apple crisp can be made and stored in the skillets (or whatever baking dish) for up to a day. Loosely cover apple crisp with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. When ready to bake, remove plastic wrap and place directly into a preheated oven. Add 3 to 5 minutes to the baking time.

Freezing

If freezing, I recommend doubling the recipe and freezing in an 8″x 8″ baking dish or pan for best results. To freeze, assemble apple crisp recipe completely, but leave unbaked. Tightly cover with a few layers of plastic wrap followed by a layer of tightly wrapped foil. Place the unbaked crisp in the freezer until ready to use. Use within 6 months for best quality.

When ready to bake, remove foil and plastic wrap. Recover tightly with foil and bake frozen for about 25 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes or until top is golden brown and filling is thick and bubbling.

Apple Crisp Recipe Variations

Add an extra bit of spice to the filling with a pinch of nutmeg and squeeze of lemon juice.
Add some chopped nuts like pecans or walnuts to the streusel for extra crunch.
Use cold brown butter that has solidified in the crisp topping (streusel) to add a hint of a nutty, savory element to the dessert.

Tips and Tricks for Apple Crisp Success

It’s important to use cornstarch in the filling to ensure the apples and juices thicken nicely and come together instead of being dry and crumbly. (all-purpose flour can also be used to achieve this)
To check the filling doneness, use a paring knife to pierce through the apple crisp. If resistance is felt within the filling the crisp is not ready. If the streusel is already brown, cover the crisp with foil to prevent the streusel top from burning.
It’s import to peel, core and thinly slice the apples to maintain a clean and smooth texture within the filling.
Adding ice cream or whipped cream to the crisp will only enhance the overall experience!

Size Variations

Our easy apple crisp recipe is meant to make 3 (5″) cast iron skillets that can each be shared between two people or eaten by a single person with a large appetite! We understand that many people may not own mini skillets nor would they want to buy them just for this recipe, so below we have instructions to make large family style versions of our recipe.

To Make in an 8″ Cast Iron Skillet

Keep the recipe as written, but reduce the amount of butter used to grease the skillet to a total of 2 tablespoons. Once the apple crisp is assembled, increase the baking time to about 35 minutes.

To Make in an 8″x 8″ Baking Dish

Double the written recipe, except keep the butter used to grease the baking dish to 2 tablespoons (so 12 tablespoons of butter for the streusel). Increase the baking time to 35 to 45 minutes. That’s it!