Homemade Apple Crisp - Still Using Up My Bushel!

In addition to canning applesauce, I have used my bushel of apples to make cinnamon apple muffins, eat many apple with peanut butter snacks, pack apple slices in Ben's lunch, and last night I made two apple crisps.  This is our favorite baked dessert!  In fact, instead of birthday cake, we have apple crisp on our birthdays!

I'm not especially fond of peeling apples, but I just stumbled upon an easier way for ME at least. First, I used my apple corer to dig out the core.  I'm not very good at getting the entire core out on the first try, so I usually used it on both ends.  I did this to 7 or 8 apples.

Next, I used my apple peeler and peeled off the skins on the top and bottom of the apple, like this:

Using the cored center as a thumb hold, I the used my peeler to skin the rest of the apple!  It was much easier and quicker than using a knife to cut, core, and peel the apple.  An added bonus was there was a lot less apple waste than using a knife.

Next, I cut the apples in half...

...and cut them into thin slices, not too thin, though.

I then measured four cups of apples into each of two greased 8x8 glass baking dishes.

I then got the crisp topping arsenal out, as shown below:

I put 1 cup of softened butter (the real stuff!) into my mixing bowl.  If your like your crisp a little more on the softer, mushier side, I would add another 1/4 cup.

I love the crisp topping, so I prefer a little apple with my topping, so I made half again the amount of ingredients for the topping that the recipe called for.  I added 2.25 cups of brown sugar, 1.5 cups of flour, 1.5 cups of  oatmeal, 2.25 tsp. of cinnamon, and 2.25 tsp. of nutmeg.  I just realized I forgot the nutmeg; I thought it didn't taste as festive as it normally does.  Bah!

Cut the dry ingredients into the butter until it resembles coarse crumbs.

Pour over the top of your apple layers,

and bake for 30-35 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

I went out to the garage with Gracie to help Ben with some work while these were baking, and the house was so aromatic when we came back in.  Yum!  We had a serving before we went to bed with a smidgen of ice cream.

Apple Crisp

by Mom Teesdale

8 cups apples, sliced, pared and cored

2.25 cups packed brown sugar

1.5 cups flour

1.5 cups oatmeal

2.25 tsp. cinnamon and nutmeg, each

1 cup butter, softened

Place sliced apples in 2 greased 8x8 pans.  Blend remaining ingredients until mixture is crumbly.  Spread over apples.  Bake in 375 degree oven for 30-35 minutes.  Serve warm with ice cream of Hard Sauce.  Hard Sauce: 1.5 cups soft butter whipped with 1 cup confectioner's sugar and 1.5 tsp vanilla. Chill.