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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Una edwards says
Girl you did good no matter how apples turn out its g good I served this the next day and put sugar Free caramel over top well none left I smiled a lot after my husband said bon many next time you can make this delicious pie for company uh huh huh !👒👒
Jenny says
can I make this the night before?
The Chunky Chef says
Yes 🙂 I would cover it after it cools and refrigerate until tomorrow. 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.
Fan says
Just made this for breakfast and am in the livingroom while its in the oven. Oooh, the fantastic aroma!!! Yup, definitely makin this again 😀
Rose True says
Thank you for such an easy and tasty Apple Crisp! I had 3 really large Envy apples (which were very sweet) and I needed to use them. I came across this recipe and read several of the reviews which were excellent and thought, “what the heck?” I had all the ingredients and went fot it! Only thing I adjusted was adding two tablespoons of AP flour to the apple filling, and a half cup of chopped walnuts. I left the “crisp” pretty much alone but did add 1 cup of the chopped walnuts. We just love nuts in our desserts. I used a 9X9 glass pan, (it’s all I had). I noticed that my crisp was really filled to the max so I layed a thin sheet of foil on top and put the pan on a cookie sheet just in case there was overflow bubbling. I baked for 40 mins. and checked. I poked and apples were still a little hard so I removed the foil and baked for 15 mins. longer. I thought the crisp needed a little more browning so I turned off my oven and left my pan in for 10 mins. longer to crisp up more. I served this to my hubby along with your carmel suace and whipped cream. One word…AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!
D Brant says
Topping is way too sweet which ruined the entire dish. I would no recommend this recipe,
Robyn says
I’ve made this so many times and love it!!! Do you know if it can be prepared a day in advanced and then baked? Or partially prepared? Thank you!!!!
The Chunky Chef says
So glad you enjoy it! I’ve not tested this, but many other readers have baked it the day before, then cover it after it cools and refrigerate until tomorrow. 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 🙂
Judy says
I and this and it was a hit!!! Will make it again for sure.
Mandy says
This was sooo good
Kat W says
This recipe is so yummy and super simple! I had bought a bag of discount clearance apples that were pink lady, Fuji and honeycrisp and used those. I made the recipe exactly as written except I doubled the amount of topping and dotted the top with butter before baking. My husband and I have eaten half the pan in a day. So yummy and I will definitely be making again. Thanks for the recipe!
Greg says
I’ve made this classic for the family twice and they beg for more!
RK says
I have all ingredients except the oats for this tonight. Can anything else be substituted or can the oats be left out?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if additional changes would need to be made to omit the oats. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Elise Moloney says
Clarification on my comment today: I cut the white sugar down by 1/2 tablespoon so I use 1 1/2 tbsp.
Elise Moloney says
Everyone loves this!! I cut the white sugar down a little bit … only 1/2 tbsp. because the topping is very sweet. I heat it up in oven about 12 minutes if it’s been in fridge and serve w vanilla ice cream on top! Very delicious even w/out ice cream.
Cathy Lawson says
So easy and so delicious! A little on the sweet side so vanilla ice cream is good on top to balance the flavors
Kevin Wilmot says
Yum
Christine says
Easy to make and delicious
Susan says
Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes. I can count on you when I need a good one! You are very clear in your explanations and everything I have made of yours has been excellent. Including this delicious Crisp.
Marcella Dcott says
Yummy!
Mary says
can the butter be omitted? or substituted for something else? I dont have any
The Chunky Chef says
You could try some oil, but that will change the texture a bit.
Cheri says
Found out I was out of butter 3/4 of the way through–substituted Crisco butter flavored shortening for the topping and dotted the apple mixture with some Country Crock for better butter flavoring. I’m sure it’s inferior to the original’s flavor, but it did come out quite tasty in spite of the emergency!
Maureen says
Apple crisp was a hit.