Apple Crisp

Hands down, my favorite dessert is apple crisp.  Fall doesn't officially begin for me until I've had a bowl of it.  Here is my absolute favorite recipe for apple crisp that I came up with after years of trial and error.  I am a heavy-on-the-crisp kind of girl and this recipe yields the best apple-to-crisp ratio. 

Ingredients:

• 4 large apples
  
• 1 tbsp freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• 3/8 tsp white sugar, divided
• 3/8 tsp ground cinnamon, divided
  

Crisp Topping

• 3/4 c dark brown sugar, packed
  
• 1/2 c all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c quick-cooking oats
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 c walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 c butter, softened
  
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Peel, core and slice apples into 1/8-inch thick slices. Place the apple slices in a bowl and toss them with the lemon juice.

Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking dish. Place 1/3 of apples in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with 1/8 tsp of white sugar and 1/8 tsp of cinnamon.   Place another 1/3 of apples on top and sprinkle with 1/8 tsp of white sugar and 1/8 tsp of cinnamon. Repeat one more time.

In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, walnuts and salt.  Stir in the butter and vanilla and mix well..

Evenly spread the crisp topping over the apples.

Bake for 35 minutes, until apples are tender. Allow to cool at least 15 minutes before serving.  Serve alone, with whipped cream or ice cream.

Enjoy!