This Apple Crisp recipe is the perfect fall dessert topped with a buttery brown sugar streusel It’s simple enough for a weeknight dessert and easier than an apple pie. It’s a classic old fashioned dessert.

It’s fall and time to make some apple desserts. If you’re looking for the comforting flavor of baked apples and cinnamon then you’ll love this classic apple crisp recipe. Taylor is my apple lover so after getting some fresh apples at the farmer’s market, we made a simple and easy homemade apple crisp.
The house just smells like fall when you bake apples, it reminds me of my grandmother who loved to bake apples.
With this recipe, some of the buttery streusel topping is mixed in with the apples, because seriously who doesn’t love streusel. I like adding pecans to a crisp to give it a nice crunch, but then I add nuts to everything. I mixed my favorite apples, fuji, with some braeborn that were so flavorful. Use your favorites whatever they might be. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and your set, the perfect fall dessert.
What you’ll need for the best apple crisp
- Apples – I suggest using your favorites. Adjust the cooking time so that the apples are soft. Most people suggest granny smith apples because of their tartness, but I prefer a fuji or mixture of apples.
- Cinnamon and sugar – to sprinkle on the apples before they bake.
- Pecans – they not only add flavor but a nice crunch.
- Oats – quick cooking to give texture to the crisp.
- Brown sugar, butter and flour.
How do you make this simple apple crisp recipe
A crisp is so simple to make, you can put it all together in just a few minutes. You can easily prepare this in advance and then put it in the oven while you’re eating and you’ll have a yummy dessert ready by time you’ve finished dinner.
Step 1: Peel and slice the apples. You don’t have to peel them, but I have picky eaters who don’t like the skins. Toss with cinnamon and sugar.
Step 2: Combine flour, brown sugar, nuts and oats and work the butter into it with a pastry cutter or your fingers.
Step 3: Take 1 cup of the streusel and mix it in with the apples. Place the rest on top and bake for an hour until the apples are bubbly and the top is golden brown.
If you need some comfort food to enjoy while the weather is turning cool, you can’t go wrong with a bowl of warm apple crisp.
You can use any type of apple or a mixture of tart and sweet. I like a fuji apple.
You can leave the peelings on or off, it’s a personal preference but it’s delicious either way.
If you’re going to prepare this in advance, sprinkle some lemon juice over the apples so they don’t turn brown. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.
Let it warm to room temperature and then place in a 350º oven for 15 minutes, or microwave for about 30 seconds.
You can store it at room temperature for a couple of days, then it will need to be refrigerated or frozen.
I’ve found that the terms are used interchangeably. Both have a streusel topping but technically a crisp has oatmeal or nuts to make it crispier.
Looking for more apple desserts
- Apple dumplings
- Apple cobbler with sweet potato biscuits
- Apple hand pies
- Apple and pear galette
- Grilled apples
- Apple pie bars
- Apple blondie
- Apple pomegranate cobbler
- Apple cinnamon rolls
Adapted from Joy the Baker
Apple Crisp Recipe
Ingredients
FILLING
- 5-6 medium size apples
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
TOPPING
- 1 ⅓ cups flour
- 1 ⅓ cups brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup pecans chopped
- ¾ cup quick cooking oats
- ½ cup butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Grease a 9X9 inch pan with butter or cooking spray.
- Filling: Peel and core apples and cut into ¼ inch slices. Mix together cinnamon and sugar and mix with apples.
- Topping: In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts and oats. Work the softened butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until it resembles coarse meal. Remove 1 cup and toss with apple mixture. Place apple mixture in the prepared pan and spread the rest of the topping overr the apple mixture.
- Bake until topping is golden brown and apples are bubbling, 55-60 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- If preparing in advance, sprinkle apples with lemon juice to prevent browning.
- This is even better with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
- You will get even more flavor by using a variety of apples, try some that are tart like granny smith along with a sweeter apple like a fuji.
- You do not have to peel the apples.
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