Up North, fall means the leaves change color, people pull out their sweaters and apple season peaks. Though our autumns in Florida are just cooler versions of summer, allow me to introduce you to apple crisp, Northern-style.
My old home in Pennsylvania featured its own little apple tree in the backyard, and from August to December, it was bogged down with apples galore. During this time, I was tasked with the job of picking up any fallen orbs. Yes, the same apples that would be bruised, half-eaten by the dogs and if they were left long enough, infested with bees.
To minimize my chore, my mother churned out apple crisps at an alarming rate. There wasn’t a community gathering during those months that didn’t feature at least one of her tasty desserts. So as you celebrate National Apple Month, and Wednesday as National Dessert Day, try out this apple crisp recipe, straight from my mother’s kitchen.
Her food formula is simple, requiring less than an hour of your time from start to finish. The hardest part is prepping the apples, which was also my duty growing up (our fruit peeler was the coolest contraption ever). But the sweet payoff is worth it.
Apple Crisp
Serves 6-8; Joan Bailey
Ingredients
Filling:
6-8 tart apples (you can use a variety, but not Red Delicious)
2 tablespoons sugar
Dash of cinnamon
1 teaspoon flour
1 1/2 teaspoons water
Crumb Topping:
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 medium egg
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 13x9 baking dish.
For the filling, peel, core and slice the apples. Combine sugar, cinnamon and flour in a large bowl with the sliced apples. Place the filling evenly in the baking pan and pour water evenly over the mixture.
Mix the flour, sugar and egg until crumbly for the topping. Spread topping over apples. If desired, add cinnamon sugar as well.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream if desired.
