Mom’s Mom’s Old Fashioned Apple Crisp Recipe

This old fashioned apple crisp is my mother-in-law’s recipe, made with tender cinnamon apples and a buttery brown sugar oat topping. It’s a simple, comforting dessert I love to serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Below, I’ll show you how to prepare the apples, mix the crumb topping, and tell when your crisp is ready. One step worth waiting for: let it cool slightly before serving so the filling has time to set.

The secret to getting a crunchy apple crisp, one that’s bubbling with butter and apple juices, is to make sure it bakes to just the right temperature. 

And I will show you how in my expert tips below!

🍎  Mom’s Apple Crisp — At a Glance
Prep Time	25 minutes
Bake Time	Bake for 40 – 50 minutes
Pan Size	13 x 9 baking dish
Best Apples	Royal Gala or McIntosh blended with Granny Smith ; pink lady for extra sweetness, Gala for more sweetness
Optional Variation	Bosc pears folded in with the apples; a splash of Grand Marnier for an adult version
Serves	8 – 10
Storage	Cool to room temp, then cover or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for a few days

🎥Watch me make this delicious apple crisp!

Ingredients

You’ll find all the ingredients to make this homemade Apple Crisp recipe in your local grocery store:

• Apples: We’re using two varieties in our apple filling.
• Sugar: White for the clean sweetness, brown for a touch of rich molasses magic.
• Butter: The secret to a yummy, golden brown crumble topping. 
• Oatmeal: The heart of our crisp topping! Adds a nice crunchiness.
• Flour: This is our topping’s backbone. It helps everything stick together while also making it a bit fluffy.
• Cinnamon: Gives our apple crisp a warm, cozy kick.
• Bosc pears (optional): For a bit of a flavor twist.
• Grand Marnier Liqueur (optional): For the adults – a little splash of sophistication.

Pressed for time? Try our Freezer Apple Pie Filling recipe so you’ll always have apple pie filling ready for your dessert recipes!

When it comes to equipment, I love these baking dishes by Le Creuset. They are so heavy and have different sizes! And, of course, in my favorite color, cherry red!

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How to make Apple Crisp

Check out my YouTube video and make apple crisp with me!

Follow these simple instructions to make this easy Apple Crisp. See the recipe card below if you need more help.

1. Peel all the apples and cut them into thin, even slices.
2. In a large bowl, combine the thinly sliced apples, sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Toss it all together until every apple slice is coated evenly.
3. Spread the apple mixture in the bottom of a well greased 13 X 9 baking dish.
4. In a medium bowl, mix together your oatmeal, flour, sugar, and melted butter until it becomes a crumbly topping.
5. Spread the crumb topping evenly over the top of the apples.
6. Bake, let cool, and serve with a big ole scoop of ice cream!

And voila! You have the perfect fall dessert.

Expert Apple Crisp tips

Follow these expert tips, and this classic dessert will be perfect every time.

• Slice the apples thinly, thick pieces of fruit won’t bake as well
• Grease the baking dish well so the apples don’t stick to the bottom.
• Place a sheet of aluminum foil loosely over the top of your apple crisp when you put it in the oven. This allows the dish to steam and bake evenly. Remove during the last 15 minutes.
• Allow the apple crisp to cool so that the fruit sets and won’t be watery.

How to serve

My favorite way to serve is with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream right on top of a warm serving of this crisp. The ice cream melts slightly, mingling with the warm spices and the sweet apples. Oh boy, talk about a match made in dessert heaven! 

But hey, maybe you’re more of a whipped cream person, or maybe you like it just as is – there’s really no wrong way to enjoy this tasty treat.

How to store

To store your Apple Crisp, let it cool to room temperature first. This helps to keep the texture just right. 

Once it’s cooled, you can cover the whole thing with some plastic wrap or transfer it to an airtight container. 

Then pop it in the fridge. You’ve got a ready-to-enjoy treat for the next few days. 

To serve, just scoop out your desired portion and warm it up slightly in the microwave.

Helpful information

Here are some of the questions people have asked me about this classic desert:

What is the difference between apple crisp and apple crumble?

The difference between an apple crisp and an apple crumble is the topping. 

Apple crisp has oats, sometimes nuts, and bakes with a crunchy top.  An apple crumble is usually sugar, flour, and butter, so that it crumbles rather than crunches. 

What kind of apples should I use?

My favorite variety of apples is McIntosh, and I often blend Granny Smith apples with them for baking.

But the best apple? It’s up to you! For more sweetness, try pink lady. You can also use more tart apples, like Gala apples. 

Where did I get my inspiration for this recipe?

I like to prepare the apples just as if I’m getting ready to bake an apple pie. My post about my Mom’s Apple Pie shows you what I mean.  

When you mix the varieties of apples, and the spices – ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon, the result is amazing! 

Apple crisp is one of those classic recipes that I often make up as I go along! Sometimes I mix in oatmeal, sometimes just flour, and then again, I’ll mix both. 

I think the secret to a great apple crisp is the apples and how you prepare them. Also, the crunchy sweet topping should be full of butter, brown sugar, and other earthly delights!

My mother-in-law was a wonderful baker, and this is her recipe. I would often drop in at my in-laws for dinner after work, and there was almost always a home-baked dessert.

As soon as I walked in the door, I knew apple crisp was on that night’s menu! The delicious smells of baked apples, brown sugar, and spices created such a wonderfully warm and comforting atmosphere. Home.

A generous square of this sweet dessert, topped with a scoop of ice cream, well, you just can’t beat it. And with fall just around the corner, farmer’s markets, local food stands, and grocers will be displaying fresh fall apples.

I’ll be making a trip to the country to get those early fall apples, McIntosh, Braeburns, Granny Smiths, and Melbas, to name a few. 

They are so beautiful and smell so good when they are freshly picked.  

You might also like…

Looking for another good recipe, just like this?

From left to right, you’ll see…

Apple Pie Lasagna, Easy Apple Desserts Roundup, and Homemade Butter Tarts!

There’s even more here:

• Mom’s Apple Pie
• Harvest Apple Galette
• Upside down Apple Cake
• Apple Pie Muffins
• Dutch Apple Pie with Streusel Topping
• Apple Pandowdy

There are lots of versions of apple crisp recipes for you to try. If you want a Healthy Apple Crisp Recipe, be sure to check out this one from the Ambitious Kitchen!

Final thoughts

So there you go. A personal favorite, and a good old-fashioned baked apple dish that is sure to warm the hearts of everyone who tries it.  

It will fill your home with a delicious aroma of baked apples and cinnamon sweetness. 

This easy Apple Crisp recipe evokes memories of childhood, cozy kitchens, and a time of plain simple food. Create some of these memories for your family & friends. That’s my wish for you.

THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the Pie Lady Bakes community! We’re all about sharing easy-to-make vintage recipes that remind us of the ones our moms and grandmas used to make.

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See you soon!

Judy

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If you’ve made this delicious Apple Crisp, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Be sure to give us a 5-star rating!

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