Apple crisp…

I love history, especially American history. I also love food, so combining both is the best. If I ever wanted to go back to school, it would be to become a food anthropologist. I am intrigued by what people eat and where recipes come from. It is a wonderful way to understand how different cultures and societies lived.

I figured I would make an apple crisp to write about and post my recipe. I know many people still have a surplus of apples hanging around after apple picking. The number of apples never looks like much when picking them, but it’s a different story when you get home.

Apple crisp is a “newer” dessert. I say newer because it was created in 1924 during World War l and food rationing when ingredients for apple pies weren’t available. It became an instant success.

Apple crisp is made with apple slices, sugar, lemon juice, and spices. The topping is streusel made with flour, oats, sugar, butter, and spices. Besides the apples, all the other ingredients are essential pantry items.

A month ago, I wrote a blog post about a gigantic pear crisp I made for the night shift at our local hospital ER, where my son Sam works as an RN. I didn’t post a recipe since I didn’t have one. I just winged it and hoped for the best. It turned out delicious, thankfully.

Last week I picked up a bag of apples and decided to make an apple crisp. I wanted to write down my recipe and post it. It can be made with apples or pears. It’s one of the easiest dessert recipes; the most challenging part is peeling the apples and cutting them into slices or chunks. I like slices since I think they look better.

Classic apple crisp isn’t diet food by any means, but since it doesn’t include a fat-laden pastry crust, you can make it any way you wish. There are recipes for healthy, gluten-free (mine has the option), and vegan apple crisps.

You can add less butter and sugar, add more oats or different types of flour, add how much or little topping you would like, and add more apples or pears. You can add additional spices or leave out ones you don’t like. It’s such a versatile dessert.

Here is the recipe I used tonight. You can double it to make a 9×13 pan instead of the 8×8 pan I used. The amount of spices is to my taste, so if you want to add more or less, it’s up to you. The salt in the recipe is important as it brings out the flavors and rounds out the taste.

Please keep in mind I am not a professional food blogger with expensive fancy recipe-writing programs; if you are looking for nutritional information. My recipes are straightforward recipes that I have tasted and tested for accuracy cutting out fussy unnecessary steps and dishes. Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

Ingredients

The filling:

6 firm apples peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt

The streusel topping:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats or gluten-free oats
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
8 Tbsp butter cut into small cubes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Grease an 8×8 pan with softened butter or pan spray; set aside.

To make the filling: Whisk all the filling ingredients together in a small bowl. In the 8×8 pan, add the apples and the filling ingredients. Stir gently or use your hands to combine until the apples are evenly coated with the spiced sugar mixture.

To make the streusel topping: Add all ingredients to a medium size bowl. Mix and squeeze the butter with the dry ingredients with a fork or your hands until crumbly. Continue to squeeze, forming large streusel crumbles.

Add the streusel topping covering the apples evenly. Bake at 425 degrees F until the apples are bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

To prevent the topping from burning, check often and rotate the pan halfway through baking. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Serve warm or cold, topped with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Makes 6-8 servings