Apple Crisp

When it comes to Apple Crisp, honestly, a recipe is the furthest thing from my mind. When I was a kid, my mom decided to be a 4H Leader. Our group of about 5-6 girls did Home Economics. We never competed or went to County Fairs. We just met every week and made recipes from a little typed and mimeo-d booklet, which was slim and stapled. Eventually we branched out to making Italian sausage as a group . . . and that was memorable.

Back to Apple Crisp, however. There was a rather generic recipe, with actual measurements. Now, that’s funny! It was for an 8” x 8” pan, and called for baking at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

I don’t use nutmeg and Dad disliked cinnamon, so the recipe got modified. We had a big family, and the recipe got enlarged to a 13” x 9” pan. The struesel topping got modified to include brown sugar, oatmeal, and sometimes nuts! It’s easier than pie! My sweetheart prefers it with vanilla ice cream, and if he can get it, whipped cream. Plain or dressed up, it’s a hit.

Often, when we went to our cabin in the Southern Tier of New York (in the fall), we were able to pick apples from an ancient and long abandoned orchard. We also gathered hickory nuts, and cracked them; throwing the shells into the fireplace and saving the meats to put into a huge batch of our favorite dessert.

When you bake with apples, remember some are tart, others are sweet. Some break down and others keep their shape. A Granny Smith should always be thrown in. My favorites are Honey Crisp, Cortlands, and Northern Spies. I’ve never been a fan of MacIntosh, but to each his own.

Making it now makes my husband delighted, and brings my dad’s memory into a place where I can miss him without tears. I can hear his voice saying, “I don’t mind if you burn it a little, dearie, that’s when it’s the best!” Oh, Dad, I’ll let it get a little extra-brown, just for you (but I’m adding extra cinnamon for me)!

Apple Crisp

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Grease 13” x 9” baking pan.

8 medium to medium large apples peeled, cored, pared and sliced thinly…each apple is about 1 cup.

Spread the apples evenly in the pan. If the apples are dry and not the kind to juice up, then add 

1/4 cup cider, water, or apple juice if desired.

Set aside.

For the topping:

½ cup of cold butter

½ cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

½ cup flour

1 cup oatmeal

½-1 cup walnuts/pecnas (optional)

In a large bowl or food processor, place the stick of cold butter and the white and brown sugar, and cinnamon, and pulse or break down with a fork until you have pea-sized sugar-covered granules of butter. 

Add flour, pulse/mix more. Then add oatmeal. I prefer old-fashioned to quick cooking oats. If you want, walnuts or pecans are good in this too. Pulse only slightly to mix. Don’t break down the oats.

Spread the topping evenly over the prepared apples and bake 40-45 minutes in preheated oven. Take it out when it’s browned and the juices are visibly bubbling. If you take it out too soon, the apples will still be hard to the tooth, so-to-speak. 

Let it cool a bit, but you can enjoy it hot or cold. 

Put the leftovers into the refrigerator. Microwaves easily for reheating.