Our easy Apple Crisp Recipe is a classic dessert loaded with freshly sliced apples and topped with a crunchy, crispy, buttery cinnamon oat topping.
It’s just as irresistible as our Apple Pie, but it’s so simple and quick to make. Top it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream to see why it’s the best apple crisp recipe.
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Easy Apple Crisp Recipe
We love all things Autumn, which also means we love apple recipes. From Apple Fritter Rings, to Apple Turnovers, and Apple Cake, sweetened with crisp apple slices, we can’t get enough! If you love apple season as much as we do, this recipe is a must-try.
Every year we go apple picking in my parent’s yard. They have 4 apple trees that really produce so we like to get creative with those apples to capture the season. This recipe is on our regular rotation in Fall because it calls for a generous amount of apples. Here’s why it’s our go-to dessert:
- Quick and easy to make, especially if you use an apple peeler
- Family-approved – watch their eyes light up when you add vanilla ice cream.
- Make-ahead – keeps well and reheats beautifully
- Scales up or down to fit your gathering and perfect for the holidays
Apple Crisp Video Tutorial
Watch Natasha make this easy apple crisp recipe, and see her secret for peeling and slicing apples. It’s the perfect recipe for apple season, which is any time of the year in our home!
Apple Crisp Ingredients
Apple Crisp is all about the experience—the smell of Fall spices, the crunchy topping, and the warm, gooey filling. Here are the simple ingredients that make this incredible dessert:
- Apples – we used golden delicious apples, but any crisp apple would work well (see list of options below)
- Lemon juice – keeps the apples from browning and adds flavor and acid to balance out the sweetness
- Sugar – adjust to taste depending on how tart your apples are
- Flour – helps to thicken the filling. You can substitute with cornstarch for a gluten-free apple crisp.
- Cinnamon – our favorite complimentary spice for apple recipes
Apple Crisp Topping Ingredients
- Flour – bonds the crumb together, feel free to use your favorite gluten-free flour
- Oats – use old-fashioned oats to make the crisp topping, make sure to buy gluten-free, if needed
- Sugar – we combine brown sugar and granulated sugar for a sweet caramel-like filling
- Cinnamon – compliments the apple filling
- Salt – balances the sweetness
- Butter – use unsalted, softened butter.
Substitutions
This will become your go-to recipe, so try these variations.
- Nuts – add chopped nuts to your streusel topping
- Caramel Sauce drizzled over the top just before serving
- Cranberries – substitute 1 1/2 cups of apples for fresh or dried cranberries and add more sugar if using fresh cranberries
- Spices – add a pinch of cloves, nutmeg, or even candied ginger
Which Apples are Best for Apple Crisp?
Select firm and crisp apples so they won’t get mushy in the oven. Apples vary a ton in sweetness so adjust sugar accordingly. We used Golden Delicious here with 3/4 cup of sugar, but if you use Granny Smith Apples, increase the sugar to 1 cup or add it to taste.
You can use an assortment of apples. For instance, combine sweet and tart apples for a different flavor. Here are our favorite apples for baking:
- Golden Delicious
- Granny Smith
- Fuji
- Honeycrisp
- Jonagold
- Braeburn
- Pink Lady
How to Make Apple Crisp
Slice, mix, dump, bake—see how easy it is to make this classic recipe:
- Prep – Butter a 9×13 casserole dish, preheat oven to 375˚F.
- Cut Apples – peel, core, and slice apples into 1/4″- thick pieces (an apple peeler makes it easy), then transfer to a bowl, and toss with 2 Tbsp lemon juice.
- Coat Apples – in a bowl, combine flour, sugar, and cinnamon then sprinkle over apples and stir to coat. Transfer to buttered casserole dish.
- Topping – In a mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, both sugars, cinnamon, and salt. Add diced softened butter and use your hands to stir in the butter until pea-sized crumbs form throughout. Then, spread the topping evenly over your apples.
- Bake – place on the center rack in the oven and bake uncovered for 45-50 minutes until bubbling at the edges. If the top is browning too quickly, loosely cover the dish with aluminum foil until the apples are bubbling.
Pro Tip
If you want to keep your hands clean, you can mix the topping in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment until pea-sized crumbs form. Be sure not to overmix, because you want the topping to be crumbly, not dough-like.
Common Questions
We often use the terms interchangeably, and the ingredients are very similar, but technically speaking, an apple crisp has a crunchy oat-based topping, while an apple crumble has a sandier texture since it is flour-based. Apple Cobbler has a biscuit or cake-like topping.
Yes, you can replace the flour in the apple filling with cornstarch and then replace the flour in the topping with 1 to 1 gluten-free flour or flour substitute.
Using an apple peeler is a major time saver. It will peel, core, and slice your apples in seconds.
Sure! Put the apple crisp filling in the slow cooker, and top with the streusel. Before closing the lid, place a paper towel on the slow cooker bowl first to catch any condensation. Cook until bubbly, on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-7 hours.
We use old-fashioned oats because they crisp up perfectly as the apples bake. Quick oats are cut into small pieces, so the topping will have a finer texture and not be as crunchy. Avoid steel-cut oats since they won’t cook in time.
How to Serve Apple Crisp
The best way to serve apple crisp is warm, topped with a generous scoop of vanilla bean ice cream. You can try topping it with caramel sauce, greek yogurt, or whipped cream as well.
There’s nothing like pulling an apple dessert out of the oven to draw everyone into the kitchen. Who can resist the sweet aroma of a baked Apple Crisp?
Make-Ahead
- Room Temperature – store apple crisp covered on the counter for a day but refrigerate leftovers beyond that.
- To Refrigerate – once apple crisp is at room temperature, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3-5 days.
- To Reheat – apple crisp is best served warm. You can reheat the chilled crisp in the microwave just until heated through or reheat in the oven at 350˚F for about 15 minutes.
More Autumn Desserts
These autumn dessert recipes always hit the spot when we’re craving those sweet, spicy, and comforting flavors of fall.
Apple Crisp Recipe
Classic Apple Crisp recipe with fresh sliced apples, topped with crisp and buttery cinnamon oats. So good served with vanilla ice cream.
Servings: 10 people
For the Apple Crisp Filling:
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Prep: Generously Butter a 9×13 casserole dish with 1/2 Tbsp butter. Preheat the oven to 375F.
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Peel core and thinly slice apples to 1/4’ thickness. You should have 12 cups of sliced apples. Squeeze 2 Tbsp lemon juice over the apples and toss to coat.
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In a separate bowl, stir together 3/4 cup sugar, 3 Tbsp flour, and 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon then sprinkle mixture over apples and toss to combine. Transfer apples into the buttered casserole dish.
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Make the topping – in a large bowl, use your hands to stir together flour, oats, brown and granulated sugars, cinnamon, and salt. Add the diced butter and work it into the mixture with your hands until pea-sized crumbs form throughout. Spread topping over apples.
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Bake at 375˚F for 45-50 minutes or until the topping is golden and crisp and apples are bubbling at the edges. The center should register above 175˚F.
*Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or a combination of any firm, crisp apples will work.
**Use 1 cup sugar or add to taste for tart apples such as Granny Smith.
496kcal Calories80g Carbs4g Protein19g Fat
Nutrition Facts
Apple Crisp Recipe
Amount per Serving
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
