Dutch Oven Apple Crisp Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you know when apple crisp is done? ›

Bake the apple crisp until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown and crisp, about 45 minutes. Serve the crisps warm with vanilla bean ice cream or fresh whipped cream, if desired.

The main reason your crumble topping isn't crunchy is probably because you haven't used Demerara sugar. Although, it could also be that you've got your topping ingredient quantities wrong: either too much or not enough flour and butter alongside the sugar.

The firm and crisp Granny Smith and Honeycrisp varieties are popular apples to use in apple pies and apple crisps.

Lemon juice and vanilla extract – both of these are for complexity of flavor in your apple filling. You could leave them out if you don't have them, but they make a noticeable difference in the final product. Cornstarch or arrowroot starch – this is how we get a thick and not watery apple crisp!

Not enough butter, and your topping will be a dry, floury mess. Too much butter and your topping will become a greasy blob or disappointingly soggy. Some recipes will ask you to cut in cold butter along with your dry ingredients, resulting in pea-size pieces that are sprinkled across the hot fruit filling.

Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 45 minutes, until the apples are cooked through and tender, but not overcooked and mushy. When done, remove the apples from the oven and baste them with the juices from the pan.

A pastry chef friend shared the technique. Instead of sprinkling the raw crumbs on top of the fruit, where they absorb the juices and turn a little mushy on their undersides, he spread them out in a pan and baked them separately, until crisp and cookielike.

Baking: Start baking the apple crisp covered with foil. This allows the apples to soften without any risk of the topping over-browning. After about 20 minutes, remove the foil and let the crisp finish cooking uncovered. Once the juices are bubbling, the topping is golden brown, and the apples are tender, it is done!

Why are some apples mealy while others are crisp? A. “When apples are mealy, the cells split apart from each other when you bite into the fruit, whereas with crisp fruits the cells rupture and release juice,” said Susan Brown, an expert in apple breeding at Cornell University who has helped develop several varieties.

Like an apple crisp, an apple crumble is a baked fruit dessert with a layer of topping. But unlike the crisp, the crumble topping rarely includes oats or nuts. Instead, a crumble's topping is more like streusel, made with flour, sugar and butter.

What is the difference between apple crisp and apple cobbler? ›

Cobbler: A fruit dessert made with a top crust of pie dough or biscuit dough but no bottom crust. Crisp/crumble: In Alberta, the terms are mostly interchangeable. Both refer to fruit desserts similar to cobbler but made with a brown sugar streusel topping sometimes containing old-fashioned rolled oats.

As mellow as sweet apples come, Gala apples are known for their sweet, vanilla aroma and soft bite. Bittersweet and soft fleshed, the Red Delicious is a classic apple with mild crispiness. The Golden Delicious sits at the bottom of the crunch list with soft skin and mellow, yellow apple flavors.

Lemon juice prevents oxidation of the apples, which means that it stops the slices from turning brown by providing a barrier between the ...

Lemon juice keeps the flesh of your apples from turning brown before you bake them, making for a more appealing presentation. This way you can prepare your apple crisp with oatmeal before you start dinner, then set it on the counter until you're ready to bake.

I prefer slicing the apples the day I plan to bake the crisp as they start to oxidize once they're sliced and turn brown in color. Add a little extra fresh lemon juice to help prevent the apples from turning super brown. Prepare the entire apple crisp, cover well, and refrigerate the night before baking.

Not adding a thickener

Fruit is naturally watery, and when it bakes, that liquid cooks out and mixes with your sugar and spices to create a delicious sauce. However, you don't want your apple crisp weeping everywhere. Just toss in a little cornstarch or tapioca starch with your fruit before baking.

Go too hot and the crumble topping with get too dark before the fruit is ready. You'll be left with too-hard fruit and a burnt topping, which will make both you and us sad. If the top could use a little extra browning, jack the temperature or broil it after it's fully baked. Just keep a vigilant watch!

To reheat, bake covered at 350°F for 20 minutes, or until heated through. NOTE: I recommend thawing the baked crisp before reheating, but if you want to try to reheat from frozen and are using a glass pan, make sure it's tempered glass, like this OXO option made from borosilicate glass.