The Best Vegan Apple Crisp Recipe - Build Your Bite (2024)

FAQs

How do you thicken apple crisp? ›

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!

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.

Under the simple butter-sugar-flour-and-oat topping is the apple filling scented with cinnamon. Our test kitchen says baking apples, like Rome or Cortland, are the best varieties to use for apple crisp, but Empire, Gala, or Braeburn apples are also good in this recipe.

If you are cooking for a longer time for a golden crust, try slicing your apples all a uniform 1/2 inch thick. Granny Smiths are a good choice since they are full of pectin, a natural thickening agent. They should keep the bottom from getting soggy.

How can I make my apple crisp crispy? If your butter to flour to sugar ratio is off, it will result in a less crispy topping. You want to be careful not to add too much flour or too little. Also, we love adding old fashioned rolled oats to our crumble because it really gives it a nice crunch.

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. Don't wait any longer than overnight before baking, to prevent the apples from browning too much or drying out/spoiling.

In the Original Picayune Creole Cook Book (1901) a recipe identical to the Brown Betty traveled under the name “Mulatto's Pudding” furthering the idea that the sweet-sounding Brown Betty was more a race-based epithet towards its maker than a homey moniker denoting golden-brown bread crumbs.

Does apple crisp need to be refrigerated after baking? While some sources suggest that fruits pies and crisps can be stored at room temperature for up to 2 days, I highly recommend refrigerating it to be on the safe side. Can you reheat apple crisp? Yes!

Both are very similar apple desserts, but the difference mainly comes down to the crumble topping: Instead of the flour and oat mixture used in an apple crisp, an apple brown betty uses breadcrumbs for its crumbly, delicious topping.

Later in the season, Paula Red apples develop a mealy, softer consistency suitable for several cooked preparations. The apples can be incorporated into crisps, cobblers, and crumbles, baked into scones, muffins, granola bars, and pancakes, or combined with firmer apple varieties in fillings for pastries.

Can I prep apple crisp ahead of time? ›

Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Baked and cooled crisp freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake (covered) in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 30 minutes or until heated through. You can prepare the crisp through step 3, then cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day before baking.

Some apples are naturally crisp and firm when bitten into, while others have a softer or mealy texture. For example, varieties like Honeycrisp and Fuji are known for their crispness, while Red Delicious may have a softer texture.

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!

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.

Use cold, cubed butter.

Making the crumble with room temperature or melted butter will cause the topping to spread as it bakes, rather than creating a landscape of craggy, crunchy sweet pieces. Using cold butter will help all the crumble ingredients bind together before baking and then saturate them evenly in the oven.

When you cook apples, the pectin in them breaks down, making the apples watery. The lower pH value of tart apples reduces the amount of pectin that breaks down, so the apples hold their shape and get less mushy.

The ingredient list for a crumble or crisp is relatively short, but don't be tempted to leave out the cornstarch. As fruit cooks, it releases its juices, becoming saucy and soupy. This is partially what makes a crisp so delicious—but also what can turn it from a casserole-style dessert into fruit soup.

Typically that wonderfully fresh fruit sheds all its juices in the oven, leaving the filling soupy, the fruit mushy, and the topping anything but crisp. Plopping any old raw topping onto room-temperature fruit may be easy, but it will likely lead to a soggy mess.

When thickening a fruit pie filling, there are several options to consider. Very often flour or cornstarch is used, but in certain instances tapioca, arrowroot and potato starch can also help achieve the desired consistency.