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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Lauren says
Easy and Delicious. I used a granola mix and thought it turned out well. Even reheated it was good!
Lori says
This looks yummy! I love apple crumble/crisp 🙂 It’s especially good when you drizzle maple syrup over the filling!
Mary says
This is so delicious! I had some leftover fresh sweet cherries and blueberries to use up so I made it a 3-fruit crisp. It was even more delicious!
Chloe-Da-Chef says
May I use peach instead of apple??
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not tested using peaches in this recipe, but I think it would work well 🙂
CHLOE-DA-CHEF says
I made it with peach, I think if I would do this again (with peach) I would not use cinnamon. I love this recipe! But if you use peach, do not use cinnamon. The cinnamon makes you want apple. Thx! <3 -CHLOE
Kim says
Made this recipe for my brother and sister-in-law (used granny smith apples instead of golden’s) and they LOVED it. My Mom had a taste and said it was delish. =)
Emily says
My topping didn’t crisp. It was floury. How come?
The Chunky Chef says
Oh no, that had to be frustrating! My only thought was that the butter wasn’t worked into the flour enough.
Amy Collins says
Same happened to me, it was dry and floury (still tasted good) and I do believe it is because I didn’t work butter in enough – I tried but it didn’t pearl up – would a hand mixer help or would that make it worse?
The Chunky Chef says
It does take some time to work it in… but I wouldn’t use a mixer. It wouldn’t be able to incorporate the butter without creaming it together. If you really struggle, try shredding or grating your butter. This way the pieces are very small to begin with. You could also use a food processor, just pulse a few times until you get pea sized pieces.
Brenda marmy says
Can you freeze apple crisp? And can you freeze apples? If so how do you prepare them for freezing?
The Chunky Chef says
I haven’t tested freezing this recipe, but I know several other readers have done so successfully. I would assemble the crisp, then cover and freeze. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed.
Shannon says
This apple crisp recipe is my favorite! I made it for my family the other day and they loved it. I used apples the first time I made it but the second time I used peaches and it turned out great! I like to prepare the apples ahead of time and let them sit in the fridge for a few hours to soak up the cinnamon, sugar, and lemon. They are way better that way.
Martina says
I have tried many apple crisp recipes but this one is hands down the best! We loved it and I am making it again. Thank you. A word says to eat an apple in a day keeps the doctor away.
Julia says
made mini apple pies and decided to use this recipie for my extra apple filling 🙂 can i make this recipie with less filling and less topping?
The Chunky Chef says
Absolutely 🙂
Tiffany says
Do you need to refrigerate leftovers?
The Chunky Chef says
I always do
Tiffany says
Thank you
Fran says
The best Apple Crisp ever. Made it exactly as the recipe.
I would like to make it for a larger group, in a 9 x 11 pan.
Can you tell me the increased measurements for that?
Thank you
The Chunky Chef says
So glad you love it! For a pan that size I’d estimate 1.5x the recipe. If you hover over the serving size number, a slider bar will pop up. Just slide the bar in either direction, until the number of servings you want shows (I’d go for 9 servings), and it’ll automatically calculate the correct amount of each ingredient.
Lorinda DeMarce says
Can I use quick oats? That’s all I have in my pantry.
The Chunky Chef says
Yes, the crisp topping may have a slightly different texture, but will still taste good 🙂
Pamela says
I have tried many apple crisp recipes but this one is hands down the best! We loved it and I am making it again. Thank you.
Kris says
The ONLY apple crisp for my family of 4!!!! I just baked this tonight and will be having my seconds for breakfast tomorrow morning. Scrumptious!
Magda says
Simply delicious
Charlotte says
This is a great quick desert. I didn’t have any oatmeal in the cabinet however; Raisin Brand Cereal. That’s the only change I made so far. You can also used chopped nuts if you prefer. Awesome as is or change it up. Yummy either way!
Nomiomio says
Just made this and it is wonderful!! Thank you for sharing such a simple and delicious recipe. On the picture it says make ahead, but didn’t see any directions as to how? Or how far ahead would you recommend making it? Thanks again!
The Chunky Chef says
So glad you loved it! I would bake it the night before, cool completely, cover and refrigerate. Once you’re ready to bake, I’d reheat it at 350 F degrees for about 25-30 minutes, until warmed through.
Allie says
My teen followed the recipe exactly as written and it turned out fantastic. Honestly, it was the best apple crisp I’ve ever eaten. Great recipe!
Stanlie L Murray says
Can I use coconut oil instead of butter?
Can I use almond or coconut flour instead of regular flour?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not tested the recipe using coconut oil and almond/coconut flour, so I can’t say for certain if it will turn out the same.
Shannon says
Don’t know if you still need this: I haven’t tried using coconut oil instead of butter but I used oat flour instead of the regular flour and it turned out very well. Because of that I’m assuming almond flour would be fine.
Gayle melnychuk says
Cooking time can vary a bit depending on the type of apple you use. Granny Smiths take longer to soften up so I cut them smaller compared to Galas. Good dependable recipe!