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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Linda says
8×8 is too small for our Sunday family dinners. Will it bake ok if I double the recipe and pan size? Should I bake 2 separate 8×8 pans?
The Chunky Chef says
I can totally relate! You can double the recipe and use a 9×13″ pan, and 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 🙂
Toya Green says
Hello! This recipe is THE BEST!! Would it be possible for me to double everything exactly to make a bigger pan? My family is always looking for more of it. Thank you!
The Chunky Chef says
I’m so happy to hear how much you love it! You can absolutely double the recipe and use a 9×13″ pan, and 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 🙂
Maria Hurley says
Love your Recipes
Everyone loves the Apple crisp I made it today for the workers at the slaughter house they all loved it ❤️😁
Maria Hurley says
Wonderful recipes
Carol Trkula says
Made this and also gave some away, very very good. Making more today, recipe is a keeper.
Caroline Brooks says
Delicious! The best apple crisp so far, the only thing I did different is cut the white sugar in half.
Megan Mortensen says
I love this recipe. It’s easy and has all the right ingredients but for some reason I can’t get my apple and topping to be done at the same time. So my apples are mushy and my topping is nice and crispy or my apples are perfect and my topping is still raw. Does anyone have any tips on how to solve this problem??
Deb says
Delicious! I made this with a mix of apples. I love the generous amount of topping.
Judith Catalan says
Delicious…I used 3 tbsp white sugar in the apples… Granny Smith green apples….. Otherwise followd the recipe exactly- It was delicious delicious and I don’t even like apple crisp. But it was watery why watery?
The Chunky Chef says
Unfortunately, all apples (even those of the same variety) will have different amounts of moisture inside, which comes out during the baking process. You can certainly stir a little flour into the apple mixture next time to help prevent this if you’d like 🙂
Remy says
Absolutely loved this recipe thank you. I added tomato paste after sautéing the carrots and celery, also added 1 can of diced tomatoes in when I added the broth.
So so good. Thank you
Paige says
Overall great recipe! Though I do use more cinnamon than what’s called for.
jaime havenar says
This made my boyfriend weak 🙂
Deb D. says
Love the old fashioned crisp, reminds me of my Grandma’s, thank you❣️
Deb says
This is the best apple crisp ever. I love it with a little half and half. Be prepared to make this a lot. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
The Chunky Chef says
Hi there Jim. Great question, although your delivery could use a bit of work. Typically when I ask someone a genuine question, I try not to be quite as passive aggressive about it, but to each their own. Kosher salt is the standard in many types of cooking due to it’s lower sodium content. I use it in my baking all the time, and have never had any issues, and neither have my recipe testers, or the nearly 2,500 other people who’ve made and highly rated this recipe. However, you can certainly experiment with alternative types of salt. That’s the great thing about cooking and baking; you can put your own spin on it.
Maggie says
I haven’t made this apple crisp yet but I know this recipe is going to be so dang delicious based on the response you served up to ol’ salt crusted Jim here.
Keep up the great work!
The Chunky Chef says
** slow clap ** Thank you Maggie, I hope you love the crisp!
Marie says
Good although topping is very heavy. If you use apples besides golden delicious, be sure to bake extra time to allow apples enough time to soften.
Shelly G says
My husband and son LOVED this!!! My husband is still raving over it!
Claire says
Best ever
Carolyn Denton says
I like to Great cheddar cheese in my apple filling. Or I would put toasted coconut in the crisp.
Phil says
Delicious! Thank you for sharing