Crumbly Apple Crisp

As I looked around for ideas to use up some organic apples that I found in the discount bin (still nice and firm, but begging to be turned into a baked goodie!), I came across oodles of recipes for one of our favorite desserts, Apple Crisp, or is it an Apple Crumble? Really, what is the difference? My mother-in-law calls it a crumble, but I have always called it a crisp, and they both seem pretty much the same. So what is a baffled baker to do? I googled.

From Emme on the CHOW boards “apple crumble in the UK is apples baked with a topping of flour, butter and sugar. In N. America, it’s basically the same thing, but the topping is made primarily with rolled oats rather than flour. It’s almost always made with cinnamon and sometimes nuts are added to it as well.”

Another site simply noted that the topping of a Crisp was like a streusel, while the topping of a Crumble is more like a crumbly pastry.

Based on these two definitions, I decided that the recipe I ended up creating (none of the ones I found on the net sounded just right!) was indeed a Crumbly Apple Crisp rather than a Crispy Apple Crumble.

This recipe is vegan, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, and soy-free. I haven’t tested it, but you could probably swap your favorite gluten-free flour blend and certified gluten-free oats to make a tasty gluten-free crisp.

• 4 medium to large apples (I don’t peel them)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup dairy-free margarine (I used the new
  Earth Balance Soy-Free, perfect!)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats (not instant;
  can reduce and use part nuts, if desired)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon, divided
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (mine was spiked with vanilla!
  — stir ¼ t vanilla into the maple if desired)

Preheat your oven to 350º F.

In a medium bowl, combine the oats, flour, sugar, ½ teaspoon of the cinnamon, and the nutmeg. Add the margarine and combine with a fork until the mixture looks like big, coarse crumbs. Set aside.

Core the apples, and thinly slice them (about 1/8 to 1/4-inch thickness). Toss them with the remaining ½ teaspoon of cinnamon, and place them in an 8 x8 inch baking dish. Top the apples with the oat mixture. Drizzle the maple syrup over everything. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the apples are soft and tender and the crumble is as crispy as you like it.

Baking Note: If you are like me, then you probably made sure the topping was very evenly distributed, and covered all of those apples. The maple drizzled over top almost creates a seal then. So even when you remove the dish from the oven, the apples will keep cooking a bit under the crumbly crust. For that reason, I wouldn’t cook this for too long. Depending on your apples, you may even be able to get away with 25 or 30 minutes of baking time, but 35 minutes worked well for us.

Alisa Fleming is the author of Go Dairy Free.Visit her web site, Go Dairy Free for a vast array of information and recipes.

• Here are more apple recipes on VegKitchen.
• Sweet tooth still craving? Here are more Vegan Baking and Sweets.
• Here are more Fruity Baked Goods.