Apple Cranberry Crisp
It’s February in Nebraska which is still Comfort Food Season. I love attending potlucks and family dinners where I just have to contribute one or two things to the meal but get to enjoy all the delicious food.
If you need an easy dessert for your next supper with friends or family, I highly recommend this Apple Cranberry Crisp made in the crock pot. It’s easy to throw together and leave until dessert time when you serve it warm and oozing with slightly melted ice cream over top.
For the tart part of the sweet-sour flavors, I used cranberries, but you could use other seasonal berries like strawberries or blackberries too. I’m sure it would also be good with just apples, but I haven’t made it that way. If you’ve never added crushed graham crackers to your fruit crisps, try it! You’ll never go back to just plain oatmeal topping again. Enjoy!!
Apple Cranberry Crisp
Ingredients
For the fruit layer
- 4-6 apples, peeled and sliced Mix different types of apples for varying degrees of sweetness or tartness.
- 2 ish cups fresh cranberries I used whatever I had leftover from Christmas recipes.
- 1/4 cup sweetener or sugar or more if your apples are very tart or you throw in extra cranberries.
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon or I love Penzey's Cake Spice which is like apple pie spice mix.
For the topping layer
- 1 cup quick cooking oats
- 8-12 graham crackers, crushed We had some leftover from s'mores in the pantry. Use however much you want. I like lots of topping!
- 1-2 cups brown sugar I use the Splenda Brown Sugar and you need less of that than regular brown sugar.
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2-2 sticks butter Depends how much topping you have. You measure butter with your heart!
- 2 tsp cinnamon Or you can add another tablespoon of the Penzey's Cake Spice instead of each individual spice
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp cloves
Instructions
- In the bottom of a large crock pot, add apples, cranberries, sugar and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Stir well until combined.
- In a separate bowl, mix the dry topping ingredients together: oatmeal, brown sugar, flour, and spices. Melt the butter in the microwave.
- Layer the topping mix over the fruit in the crock pot. Pour the melted butter over everything as evenly as possible.
- THIS STEP IS KEY: Place a clean kitchen towel over the crock pot before setting the lid on top to prevent condensation dripping on your crisp.
- Cook on Low for 4 hours or on High for 2 hours. I like Low better because there's less chance to burn the edges.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Or you could eat some for breakfast with a little cream on top. Why not? There's fruit and oatmeal. I won't judge you.
Kelly Brakenhoff is an author of eleven books and an ASL interpreter. She divides her writing energy between two series: cozy mysteries set on a college campus and picture books featuring Duke the Deaf Dog. The mother of four young adults and a hunting dog, and grandma to a growing brood of perfectly behaved grandkids, Kelly and her husband call Nebraska home.