This easy apple crisp is made the old fashioned way like Grandma used to make, and is perfect with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and salted caramel sauce!
A true classic Fall dessert, this easy apple crisp recipe is reminiscent of generations past. Pop this apple crisp in the oven and wait for the delicious smell to waft through your house!
Do you have a classic Fall dessert that you just LOVE? I have several, but one of them is definitely this apple crisp recipe! Growing up, my Mom had two classic desserts that she made… one was her famous Carrot Cake, and the other was a mouthwatering apple crisp.
This isn’t her exact recipe, but it’s one that I’ve tweaked and been working on for a while, and I’ve finally gotten it just right! While I do love pumpkin, apple is actually my favorite Fall flavor. Mostly because of this crisp lol.
Some apple crisp recipes don’t use oats, which is totally fine if that’s your thing, but I LOVE the crispy oat topping, so I made sure to add a good amount of it.
What apples do I use for this easy apple crisp
Simply put, you can use any apples that you like! My personal favorite for this recipe is the golden delicious variety, but Granny Smith or Fuji are some other great varieties.
To peel, or not to peel
It’s 100% up to you! I’ve made this recipe both ways, and I like them both equally. Generally, when I make this easy apple crisp, I’m making it for my family, and my kids wouldn’t eat it with the skins on, so I peel them more often than not. I’m sure this goes without saying, but if you choose to leave the skins on, be sure to wash the apples thoroughly 🙂
That right there is my FAVORITE way to enjoy hot apple crisp… with a cold scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, and drizzled with my luscious browned butter salted caramel sauce! If you’ve never tried it that way… you totally need to!
Looking for other recipes that use that caramel sauce?
- Caramel Apple Pie Bars
- Bourbon Vanilla Ice Cream
- Vanilla Chai Cheesecake Bars
- Butterfinger Toffee Cookies
I invite you all to join me in making my favorite Fall dessert… this easy apple crisp. Once you have it in the oven, you’ll LOVE the smell that fills your house!
Shop the recipe
- 8″ baking dish – I love the clean white look, plus it bakes beautifully!
- Vegetable peeler – You probably already have one, but in case you don’t, this one is my personal favorite!
- Pastry Cutter – I love that this is sturdy and the blades don’t bend nearly as easily as some other brands!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
Spiced apples
- 6 golden delicious apples peeled and chopped (other varieties can be used, can also be sliced)
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
Crisp topping
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup old fashioned oats quick oats can be used, but it may have a slightly different texture
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- pinch of kosher salt
- 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter diced into small cubes
Instructions
Prepare
- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Butter an 8×8 baking dish, or spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Make spiced apples
- In a mixing bowl, add chopped apples, granulated sugar, 3/4 tsp of the cinnamon and lemon juice. Stir to combine, then transfer to prepared baking dish.
Make topping
- In a separate mixing bowl, add topping ingredients (brown sugar, oats, flour, 1 tsp cinnamon, salt, and diced cold butter).
- Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the oat mixture, using a slight downward twisting motion, until mixture resembled pea-sized crumbs. Alternatively, you can use two forks or even your hands to cut butter into the mixture.
Bake
- Spread topping over apples in baking dish, and gently pat to even it out. Bake 40-50 minutes, until golden brown and bubbly.
Serve
- Serve warm and enjoy! We love to top ours with some vanilla bean ice cream, or whipped cream.
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Chef Tips
- The amount of chopped apples would be about 6-7 cups.
- Note that all ovens bake differently, so yours may take a little less or a little more time to bake.
- I don’t have an issue with my crisp being watery (due to the water content in the apples), but if a little juice at the bottom is something you want to avoid, you can try adding a little all purpose flour to the apple mixture.
Make-Ahead Directions:
- Bake as directed. After the crisp cools, cover and refrigerate until the next day. When you’re ready to reheat, set it out at room temp for 20 minutes or so, then bake at 350°F for about 30 minutes, or until hot throughout.
- I haven’t tested assembling this ahead of time (although I’m pretty sure other readers have done this successfully – you’d have to check the other comments).
- I haven’t tested freezing this recipe, although many other readers have frozen it successfully.
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
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April says
This was wayyy too sweet with 1c of brown sugar. I halved it and it was perfect. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Calli says
Amazing! First time making apple crisp, and I’d say it’s one of my new favorite desserts!! Thank you!!!
Kristi says
My husband said, “This is better than usual apple crisp!” Was that a compliment or a slam to my cooking!? Either way, this is my new go-to!
Maru says
Love it!
Rhonda Schafer says
I doubled this because I had a bunch of apples to use up-it’s fabulous! I like it for breakfast with my coffee and dessert with ice cream. So good!
Kt says
Delicious recipe, though the 1 cup of brown sugar is VERY sweet for the topping. Made it a second time and I cut it to half a cup and added chopped walnuts.
Debbie Chase says
Excellent recipe..very tasty, the topping really makes it..make sure you hear before serving and add a scoop of ice cream…Yum!
KJ says
I was very happy the way this turned out. I would definitely make it again. Very Good. I used a tarter apple. Jazz Apple.
Kg says
I used a glass pie plate instead of square. Left it in for under an hour at 350. My kids didn’t like it, and one wouldn’t even try it (extremely picky eaters), but hubby and I loved it! I’ll definitely make it again. For us lol.
Lee says
Perfect 👌
Marsha says
I have used this recipe multiple times. My go to!
Debbie A says
It’s perfect, just the way it is! Very easy to make and delicious.
Kelly Klingerman says
Way too much sugar!!! I did the cup of brown sugar but upped the oats to 4 cups and the butter to a cup. It was still way too sugary. I’ll be doing 1/2c of brown sugar next time and the same amount of oats.
Elizabeth Zavattaro says
4 cups of oats?? That seems extreme
Cynthia Mason says
Love this recipe, I will use this every time.Absolutely Delicious!
Shannon says
I made this tonight and it did not disappoint. I used half the brown sugar, double the oats, and 8 apples… so I changed it up a little bit – but it was definitely sweet enough and got a chefs kiss from my 4 year old!
Jane says
This is great! I have made it twice this week, and both times I’ve been very happy with the results. BTW I only use about 2/3 of the sugar in the recipe and double the lemon juice.
I like using my fingers to mix the butter in with the dry ingredients. It’s very easy and soothing.
Jade says
Delicious, simple, and quick! I’ve made this twice now, and it hasn’t let me down yet! I don’t have a pastry cutter, so I just massage the topping together by hand, and it works fine! I’ve also tried other apple varieties, and still haven’t been disappointed. 10/10 would eat again!
Shannon J says
This turned out dangerously good! For apple varieties that are already very sweet (such as Honey Crisp), do you think it would still turn out good with a tad less sugar? Maybe by skipping the white sugar or reducing the brown sugar to 3/4 cup?
Sharon says
This is my favorite apple crisp recipe so easy and always a big hit with the family.
Julie says
Sounds delicious. Is it good cold or at room temperature??
The Chunky Chef says
We like it at any temperature 🙂
Corrine Guilmette Laniel says
Today, I made this delicious Apple Crisp of yours, Chunky Chef, (of course with the Oats)!! IT was SO good! Fabulous, I may add! My Husband and I really enjoyed it. This will be my new go-to homemade dessert.
Thank you Chunky Chef for another awesome, quick, dessert! YUM! 😋🍎🥇✅️