Apple Cranberry Crisp with Oatmeal Topping

December 30, 2018 By justalittlebitofbacon 24 Comments

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Crisps are wonderful desserts when you want something healthy, easy, and crowd pleasing! And who doesn’t want that? This apple cranberry crisp is full of fresh apples and fresh cranberries and then topped with a simple oatmeal crumble.

Hello all!

How did the holidays treat you? I hope you had time with family and friends and tried out all sorts of yummy new recipes.

Or maybe other people don’t try out yummy new recipes as often as I do? That’s okay, because I am here to share those recipes with you and help you skip all the testing and reworking I do. 🙂

Whether you are looking for sweet or savory, I have LOTS of tested holiday recipes! And here is my latest one! (Though you can totally make this mid January just because. No holiday needed.)

What do you need?

Apples – I like to use a mix of different types – see below for my apple suggestions.
Cranberries – Use fresh for the best results, though frozen work great too. (Skip dried here – they will give you a very different result.)
Cornstarch – Just a little to thicken the juices.
Spices – A mix of warm spices – cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Feel free to add a little mace or cloves to the party.
Oat Crumble – This is my favorite EASY crumble topping – oats, flour, brown sugar, with spices and some butter.

How to make this

To make an apple cranberry crisp, top sliced apples and fresh cranberries with an oatmeal topping then bake in the oven until the topping is browned and the fruit is soft and bubbly. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Mix together the oats, flour, brown sugar, and spices. Work in the butter until crumbly.
Peel and slice the apples. Wash the cranberries.
Fill a baking dish the fruit and top with the oatmeal topping.
Bake in a 350F oven until the topping is browned and the fruit is bubbling.

1. Make the topping

All you need to make the topping is a bowl, a measuring cup, and your hands. Totally simple! And to make it even easier, I use equal amounts of flour, oats, and brown sugar along with half that in butter.

For the amount I need here I would use 1/2 cup of flour, oats, and brown sugar and 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) of butter.

Mix together the dry ingredients with a spoon. Then add the soft butter and work it in with your fingers. Set the topping aside and done!

Tip: If you put the topping the fridge while you prep the fruit the butter has some time to chill and will make a crispier crisp.

Tip: Gluten-free flour mixes can end up creating a granular, overly sweet tasting topping. If you want a gluten free topping, use the topping in my blueberry peach crisp. It is a little more complicated, but has a great flavor.

2. Prep the Fruit

Since this is an apple dessert, you will need to peel and chop the apples.

You can use an apple peeler, a vegetable peeler, or a paring knife, but no matter what: peel the apples. The peel of apples is too thick to work well in a crisp. Then do a quick chop into evenly sized pieces (or there about) with an apple corer or your handy paring knife again.

Then wash the berries and combine the apple and cranberries with some cinnamon and cornstarch in your baking dish.

Tip: Use a few different types of apples in the filling mixed together to provide a mix of flavors and firmness.

3. Bake the Crisp

Once everything is prepped and the oven is hot, sprinkle the topping over the fruit and put it all in the oven.

I find crisps take about an hour at 350F, though I like to check about 10 minutes before just in case they’re done early. Once your topping is all browned and the fruit is all bubbly, you are all set!

And the best thing? You barely need to wait if you don’t want to! Scoop some hot crisp into a bowl, top with ice cream or whipped cream if you wish (though if it’s super hot some cold ice cream is key!), and dig in. Yum!

Apple Suggestions

Really, the ones you have in the fridge right now would be fine so long as they are crisp and fresh.

If you are looking for recommendations, I would choose a couple different firm apples along with a soft apple.

Crisp and firm apples: Jonah Gold, Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith (note: this one is VERY tart and you may need to add more sugar), Rome Beauty, and Gala are a few of the firm apples you might find at the store.

Soft apples: McIntosh and Cortland are great soft apples.

You will need 6-7 apples for the filling. Use 1-2 soft apples and 5-6 firm apples.

Favorite Fruit Desserts

I LOVE fruit desserts and have posted a number of them here on the site. Here are few of my favorites!

Get the Kids Involved

Do you know what is my favorite part of fruit crisps, like this apple cranberry crisp? You can put the kids to work! 🙂 Crisps were the first dessert my daughter could make by herself.

You don’t need any special equipment. You can make more or less crisp depending on how much fruit you have, and the topping uses simple ratios which are really easy to remember.

There is a certain amount of chopping and peeling, so make sure they are ready for that or give them a hand (or buy precut fruit!), and then let them go to bake. Start here and you may have all manner of baked goods in your future with little work on your part. Bonus!

If you try my recipe for Apple Cranberry Crisp, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! And I’m happy to answer any questions you might have.

You can connect with me by subscribing to my emails or liking my Facebook or Pinterest (see the form and icons in the sidebar or below the recipe card)

– Happy Baking, Annemarie

For an easy and healthy dessert, bake my favorite apple cranberry crisp with fresh cranberries and oatmeal topping! Easier than a pie and great for holidays and parties. | justalittlebitofbacon.com #applepie #applecrisp #applecranberry #holidayrecipe #fallbaking #winterbaking #cranberries #apples

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5 from 12 votes