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.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
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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Danielle S says
What can I use if I don’t have a pastry cutter ?
The Chunky Chef says
As mentioned in the recipe, if you don’t have a pastry cutter you can use two forks or even your hands to cut butter into the mixture.
Sandie Hofschulte says
Yummy
Chantel Smith says
Delicious!!! I had to use up some apples before they went bad and thought a crisp would be nice. Easy and straightforward recipe that the whole family enjoyed! I will definitely be making this again!! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Joy says
I found this recipe way too sweet even after I cut the sugar almost in half. Think it’s also very heavy on cinnamon.
Paula C says
Can I double this recipe
The Chunky Chef says
Yes, just make sure you double all the ingredients, and I would use a 9×13″ baking dish. The baking time might need to be increased a little, but likely not too much. I would add an extra 5-10 minutes and check the apples for doneness with a fork 🙂
Bryan says
We enjoy this recipe and use apples off our tree in the backyard
OlyKDogg says
Just like Grandma used to make!
Linda says
Very moist and delicious; I did drizzle with caramel sauce and added that extra element to the apples
Connie says
This is always the best! I’ve been making this for a couple of years, have some early apples and you bet this is going in the oven tonight, my husband and kids love it!!!!! Thank you!
Tricia says
Can you freeze this? Should it be cooked or uncooked?
The Chunky Chef says
I haven’t tested freezing this recipe, although many other readers have successfully frozen it (although I can’t remember off-hand if they mentioned if the crisp was baked or unbaked). Feel free to browse the comments and see if anyone else has chimed in 🙂
Erin Johnson says
I have frozen it (cooked) and reheated in the oven. I broil the top to crisp it up again!
Keely Morgan Finucane says
Yum! Reminds me of the crisp I had growing up.
Anna says
Hello, want to make this recipe in a 9×13 with the 12 serving size. Does that work and would I need to change the temp or time in the oven? Thanks, I’m excited to make this!
The Chunky Chef says
The baking time might need to be increased a little, but likely not too much. I would add an extra 5-10 minutes and check the apples for doneness with a fork 🙂
J J says
The cinnamon says 3.5 tsp, but when you read the directions it says 3/4 tsp for one mixture and 1 tsp for the top topping. I’m confused as to how much to use. Could you please clear this up?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve checked this on multiple devices and browsers, and I can’t seem to replicate your measurement of 3 1/2 tsp of cinnamon. It’s 1 3/4 tsp, which are divided into 3/4 tsp for the apple mixture, and 1 tsp for the topping.
Ellie Chavez says
Sounds like you switched the servings (possibly by accident) to 12 from the default of 6 which would account for the doubling of the amount of cinnamon in the ingredients.
The amounts in the instructional steps don’t change with the ingredients list. So it would be 1.5 tsp in e the mixture and 2 tsp in the topping.
Easy mistake to make. Hopefully you figured it out. Happy baking!
kimberly brown says
DELICIOUS
Christina says
This is my go-to recipe. I have subbed the apples with all different kinds of fruits and used different types of flours (whole wheat, gluten free), and oats (including quick oats). It’s a crowd please every time.
Desiree says
I had some old apples in the fridge that needed to be used, so thankfully I came across this recipe. It was super easy to make and everyone loved it. thanks for posting.
Patty says
It’s delicious,,,,,
Superwomancheryl says
Absolutely delicious, I used 8 really small apples I got for free. But I would suggest peeling them. I didn’t love the skins on them. Nom nom.
victoria says
this recipe is really really good! I lost track of it and had to hunt it down after several months of not having ample apples to bake with. But i really really recommend this recipe!
Esther Noyes says
Awesome
Rich says
Reminds me of the Dump Cake recipe…but healthier