This easy apple crisp recipe has a cinnamon apple filling with a crispy brown sugar oat topping. The tart filling balances the generous amount of brown sugar oat topping!
In a medium bowl combine sliced apples, lemon juice, lemon zest, granulated sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and the pinch of salt. Stir to evenly coat all the apples.
Let sit for at least 1 ½ hours, covered in the refrigerator; stirring occasionally. Sometimes I get impatient (imagine that!) and I don’t wait that long, but it’s still delicious. The flavors are better if you let the apples macerate, but just know that I understand if you bake it right away.
Make the brown sugar crisp topping:
Preheat your oven to 350℉ with the rack in the middle.
In a medium bowl stir together the sugar, flour and oats; add the butter cubes and toss to coat them with the flour mixture. Using your hands, work the butter into the flour mixture by grabbing a handful, squeezing and mashing it against your palm with your fingers. Repeat until your hand is exhausted and the mixture sticks together in chunks but there are only a few remaining lumps of butter. Work as quickly as possible so that the butter doesn’t actually melt.
Give the apples one last stir and pour into an 8 inch square baking dish. Cover with the crisp topping using as much or as little as you wish. There is a lot! Press some down into the apples. {Trust me.}
Bake in preheated for 45-50 minutes or until the top is brown and the filling is bubbling out the sides. If you want your apples very soft, continue to bake an additional 10-15 minutes.
Let cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. Serve warm with ice cream.
You can also prepare this dish ahead. Allow it to cool completely, wrap well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to one week or freeze for several months. Allow to thaw and then reheat in a 350° F oven.
Notes
Flavor Tips - You must use tart apples or the crisp will be cloyingly sweet. Taste your fruit for sweetness and don't skip the lemon juice! Variations - If you want a more “normal” ratio of filling to topping, then just halve the topping recipe as written. You will still have more than enough to cover an 8-inch square dish.Storage - Bake ahead, cool to room temperature, wrap and then freeze for two months. Alternatively, refrigerate leftovers for up to seven days. The streusel topping can be made in advance and refrigerated for 7 days or frozen for up to two months.