I made this Apple Crisp for Thanksgiving dessert because a couple of our guests try to keep to a low sugar, lower carb diet. Now I would not consider this diet food in any way. I was simply trying to make a lighter version of traditional apple crumb pie and this was what I came up with. There is no pie crust, no added sugar in the apples and I used old fashioned oats in the crumb topping to add some fiber instead of all white flour. I also did not put as much crumb topping on as I would if I was looking to make a more rich (and calorie dense) dessert. So, although it might be a little lighter than what I usually make, it’s definitely still dessert. And, it’s pretty easy to make, especially if you can rustle up a few helpers for the apple peeling. 😉 If I wasn’t making this for Thanksgiving, I probably would have left the peels on for added fiber and chopped the apples smaller (so there wouldn’t be big bites of peel). Up to you how to slice, chop, peel, or not peel the apples. I’m pretty sure the apple crisp will taste delicious regardless of how the apples are prepared.
We started off by peeling and slicing about 20 apples to fill this 9×13 pan. You really want to fill the dish up with apples, almost mounding them in there because once they are cooked, they’ll shrink down – you’ll wonder where they all went after all that work of preparing them. 🙂 I was making this for a crowd so used a 9×13, but it’s very flexible – if you want a smaller amount, just use a smaller pan, a pie plate would work well too, and halve the topping amount.
Once you’ve got the apples sliced, sprinkle with 2 tsp. of vanilla extract. The vanilla brings out the sweetness so no added sugar is needed.
Next mix the butter, oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg until crumbly.
Pour this crumb mixture all over the apples.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for 60-70 minutes until the apples are nice and soft and the topping is browned.
Serve warm. You can also make this ahead and re-heat just before serving. Of course, a scoop of vanilla ice cream is a delicious addition as well!
Apple Crisp
Ingredients
- approx. 4 lbs apples - enough to fill a 9x13 baking dish
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup 1 stick butter
- 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats uncooked
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
Instructions
- Peel and slice the apples to fill a 9x13 baking dish.
- Sprinkle vanilla extract over the apples.
- Mix butter, oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg until crumbly.
- Spread crumb mixture over the apples.
- Bake in a 375 degree oven for 60-70 minutes, until apples are soft and topping is browned.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
- Can be made a day ahead and re-heated.