Warm apple crisp is full of tender chopped apples that get bubbly hot and syrupy and are covered in a crispy streusel topping for a delicious fall dessert. Add a dollop of ice cream and dig in!

My kiddos have a short week next week and then an extra long fall break. Since we are staying in town, I've been jotting down notes of all the fun stay-cation types of activities we can do.

The list is getting a little long for the time we have available, but that just means lots of fun choices!

And one of the activities I'm planning is for us to go apple picking! It's so fun to roam the apple orchard and look for apples to snag. And of course, the kids love the apple cider and donuts and all the goodies they sell. 

And I love bringing home bags full of apples to use in the kitchen! 🍎🍏

Speaking of, that's exactly where today’s recipe comes in.

An apple crisp is one of my very favorite fall desserts. One of my very favorites, period.

It’s always been my preference over pie. I’ll pick a crisp every single time.

Something about that bubbly, syrupy, tender fruit and that streusel topping with the crunchy contrast, oh it calls to me.

(Though I also love a healthy apple cobbler. That biscuit topping is hard to resist.)

My daughter has followed in my footsteps, too. She’s fine, but did have to stay in the hospital for a couple of nights recently. And besides all the attention and gifts, I think the apple crisp for dessert - at lunch, dinner or both - was her favorite part.

Hard to argue with that. 

And today I’m sharing my homemade apple crisp recipe that uses simple, on-hand ingredients and has that classic crisp flavor.

It’s the best way to celebrate the start of fall and the perfect cozy dessert.

This recipe also comes by way of my aunt and also a handwritten recipe I took down years ago. I’ve taken a little bit from both versions of this dessert.

And it’s the more traditional or old fashioned version. I have a fun, more healthful twist if you want to check it out with these easy apple crisp stacks.

OK, let’s get baking so you can enjoy this, too.

Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make apple crisp. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Notes on making apple crisp:

• Apples: Crisp, tart apples work best for making an apple crisp. You can use all one kind or a variety of apples. See below for details on which varieties are especially good.
• Sugar: I like using brown sugar for the topping, but you can substitute white if that’s all you have on hand.
• Flour: All-purpose flour works great here, but you can also make this with white wheat flour.
• Nuts: Either pecans or walnuts work great for the topping in this crisp. Make sure yours are chopped on the small side so you don’t have big chunks of nuts in the topping. Also, you can skip them if you need this to be nut-free.

One of the best things about this recipe is how much of the streusel topping we are using. Cause it’s all about that topping, right?

I increased the usual amount a bit to make sure we are fully covering our baking dish and ensuring every bite is full of not just big apple flavor, but big streusel crunch.

Heavenly!

Also, you really must add a dollop of vanilla ice cream for serving this cobbler. (This 3-ingredient no churn ice cream is our go-to.)

It’s kind of the perfect combination. Especially when you scoop some of the sauce from the bottom of the casserole to drizzle over top. Swoon!

Here’s one of the most common questions, so let’s tackle it.

What apples should I use for apple crisp?

- Use a crisp, tart variety of apple that will stand up well to baking. Granny Smith and Honeycrisp are both good choices. Even Golden Delicious will work.

- You can use all one variety of apple for an apple crisp or you can mix together a couple of different types of apple to use in your dessert.

And if you’re like me, and love all of these kinds of desserts, you might also be wondering the following…

What’s the difference between a crisp, a crumble and a cobbler?

• A cobbler is a little easier to distinguish as it has a biscuit-like topping that is dolloped on in mounds, giving it a “cobbled” appearance.
• A crumble is a baked fruit dessert with a streusel-like topping that typically does not include oats.
• A crisp is a baked fruit dessert with a streusel-like topping that does include oats, which “crisp” up as it bakes. A crisp topping might also include nuts, where as a crumble usually does not.

However, many people now use crumble and crisp interchangeably, especially here in the US. 

But according to these definitions, my peach blueberry crumble is technically a crisp and that this apple crisp recipe when it came to me from my aunt was technically a crumble plus nuts.

I added oats to make it officially a crisp. 👍

Yeah, that’s all a little confusing.

I’m gonna go with the interchangeable thing and just call them all delicious. 😉

Speaking of them all being delicious, you can absolutely use this crisp recipe with many different fruits. Or with different combinations of fruits.

Once you have the basic formula down, it’s somewhat interchangeable.

OK, let’s talk serving.

As mentioned, some cold vanilla ice cream is the perfect accompaniment to this warm apple crisp.

Just heaven, folks. 

However, you could sub some whipped cream or a dollop of sweetened yogurt if you prefer.

Also, a drizzle of caramel sauce would definitely be a good idea. Caramel and apples together is always a good idea.

As for leftovers, here’s how to store and reheat your crisp so it maintains maximum crispness.

How to store leftover apple crisp: 

- Leftover apple crisp, once completely cooled, should be stored in the refrigerator. Cover the top of your baking dish with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

- Make sure it’s all the way cooled, though. Otherwise, the heat from the crisp will get trapped in the dish and make the topping soggy.

- Technically, you can also safely leave it at room temperature for up to 2 days. But I like how the fridge extends the shelf life.

How to reheat leftover apple crisp: 

- You can reheat apple crisp in the microwave in single servings for a quick dessert fix. This helps get it hot all the way through the fastest.

However, some of that crisp topping may get soft in the microwave.

- You can use a toaster oven to reheat it instead or you can reheat in the microwave and then run it under a broiler for a minute or two to crisp the topping back up again.

- You an also reheat apple crisp in the toaster oven or regular oven. This works well if you have a large serving to reheat for multiple people. 

- Bake it, covered, at 350 for 15-20 minutes, until warmed through. Uncover during the last 4-5 minutes of baking time to help the topping regain some of its crunch.

I hope that answers all your burning apple crisp questions. (If not, please leave me a comment below; I’d love to help!)

And I hope this fall brings you tons of delicious apples and plenty of yummy ways to enjoy them. Starting with this recipe.

Happy baking!

XO,

Kathryn