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baked apple crisp with McIntosh apples in a white casserole dish on a wooden table with a McIntosh apple and an antique spoon

The Best Apple Crisp with McIntosh Apples

4.67 from 3 votes
Apple crisp with McIntosh apples, and a perfectly saucy filling made with a cinnamon butter mixture that transforms into a gravy for the apples when baked. Topped with a soft, thick, oatmeal-cookie-like crisp topping. Truly the best apple crisp recipe, perfect for making with McIntosh apples fresh from the orchard! 
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Apple Filling
  • 2 lbs sliced apples 7-8 apples
  • 3 tbsp salted butter melted
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 3 tbsp water
  • ⅓ cup + 1 tbsp brown sugar light or dark (I prefer dark here)
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Crisp Topping
  • ¾ cup flour spoon and level
  • ¾ cup old fashioned oats
  • ¼ cup brown sugar light
  • ¾ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
  • ½ cup cold salted butter one stick

Method
 

Apple Filling
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Butter an 8x8 glass baking dish.
  2. Peel the apples, then slice very thin, like 1/4 of an inch thin. A Johnny Apple Peeler is ideal here. If you don't have one, peel the apples, then slice into quarters, remove the core bits (as if you're slicing to eat), then slice each quarter to 1/4 inch thin.
  3. Melt butter in a large skillet. Sauté the apples with the brown sugar and cinnamon over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes until the apples release their juices and begin to soften.
  4. Mix the flour and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Turn off the heat and mix the flour paste and the vanilla into the skillet until completely combined.
Crisp Topping
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (everything except the butter). Take the cold butter out of the fridge and cut it into very small cubes; cut into lengthwise quarters, then chop into cubes from there. Using a pastry cutter, or your hands, press and mix the butter into the flour/oat mixture until it begins to form pea-size chunks.
  2. Take a handful of the crisp and form into a large patty-like cookie and place on top of the apples. You are not sprinkling the crisp onto the apples, you are pressing large chunks/patties on top.
  3. Bake on the middle rack for 35 minutes until the topping is perfectly toasted.

Notes

  • Let rest for 20 minutes before serving.
  • Serve with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce.
  • Store covered tightly at room temperature for 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
  • You do not have to use McIntosh apples, any kind of apple will work!
  • Double this recipe if using a 9x13 inch baking pan.