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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Nancy Lewis says
Tried this recipe because it seemed simple to me. It was “Amazing “ Thanks for the great recipe ❤️ My family loved it 😍
Lisa says
I think it’s kind of confusing and the ingredients list it’s missing nutmeg but in the directions it has not made to add in with the sugar and the salt and in the ingredients list there’s no salt I think that the direction should have been paid more attention to and the ingredients as well this recipe is very confusing and it is not put together very well
The Chunky Chef says
What I find confusing is that this recipe doesn’t call for nutmeg, which is why it’s not listed. And there is kosher salt listed in the ingredients list, so I’m not sure what recipe you were looking at, but I don’t think it was this one. Also, punctuation would make things less confusing 🙂
Marcella Rice says
Great response to Lisa from 4/7 !
James says
Lisa you need a cup of tea
Baking is beauty says
“Hardest” part is peeling and slicing the apples… the rest is “a-b-c,”’the end result is warm, comforting apple crisp with a slight crumbly crunch… worth the peeling effort!
Your family and craving will thank you later.
Cheers to a great recipe Amanda.
We appreciated it.
Sarah says
Delicious! Was asked for the recipe when served at a womens get together!
Lisa Boldt says
Easy and delish 🙂
Sara says
I’ve made this many times and it’s the best apple crisp I’ve tried so far!
Shawntay says
Delicious! And very simple to make. One mistake I made was using a baking dish that was too long. but it was still very delicious, just not very deep. Next time! This has now been added to my sunday supper rotation 🙂
Ashley says
So delish! I’ve tried other recipes and thought what could go wrong, it’s just apples and oats essentially, but they’ve never turned out well. This was perfect!
Rosemary says
This is excellent! I especially like the fact that there is enough topping throughout.
Ben says
This was great, really under rated dessert, I only used 2/3 cup of brown sugar and even that was fairly sweet (although I’m not American!).
Pam hartman says
Can you make this the night before un baked without topping
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not tested this recipe that way, so I can’t say for certain, but I believe many other readers have done this successfully. It may take a little longer to bake since the dish will be cold.
Sandy Bond says
can hardly wait to make this it sounds soooo good?
Schasre says
Best and easiest apple crisp recipe!
Kids and husband ate it all in one night! Total hit!
Dennis says
It was delicious!
Cathy proctor says
What would the measurements be foray a 9 1/2 X 11 cake pan, please?
The Chunky Chef says
I would 1.5x all of the ingredients.
Jill says
I made this and I’m making again. It’s very good and comforting.my apples were a bit chunky so I’m going to slice them this time and have them thin. Thank you for the recipe.
Annie says
Can you make this recipe , cool it then freeze it for another day?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not frozen this recipe myself, but I know many other readers have done so successfully.
emm says
personal preference, but i added probably double the cinnamon, and liked it a bit better! but i absolutely loved this recipe aside from that, thank you 🙂 i used it for my science project we were assigned and loved it
Terry says
Best apple crisp ever. I did not change the recipe at all, except for quadrupling it because I made for a large group. Nothing but compliments and none left for me to take home!!!
Vicki says
So delicious! I added a generous handful of walnuts to the topping and it was soooooo good. Not a bite left 👍
Calie says
So good! My husband is a foodie and this one passed. Will definitely save and make it again!
Steph says
What can be used if I don’t have a pastry cutter
The Chunky Chef says
You can use two forks or two butter knives, or if you have a food processor, that will also work well. https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-to-use-if-you-dont-have-a-pastry-cutter-4017860
Mary says
Delicious and easy. Will make again and again. Thank you!