First, it comes straight from my Betty Crocker cookbook. The recipe is a simple topping of oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter and the apples are just the most gorgeous mix of Cortlands and Honey Crisps I could find!
And if you haven't tried a "Honey Crisp" Apple yet, then you must. Go ahead, run to the apple farm, I'll wait.....
(Moseys around... makes coffee.... drinks it.... comes back.....)
AREN'T THEY MARVELOUS?????? YES, YES, YES!!!!!
But I'm happy with good ol' Cortlands for baking and cooking because they're:
1. Cheaper
2. Wonderful!
3. Did I mention cheaper????
4. Trustworthy
Cortlands and Crispins always turn out good baked goods. They're indestructible. I love them! And if I've shared this recipe before, trust me: It's good enough to share twice! And you can add raisins/nuts if you want, but my crew likes it standard issue. Lots of apples (I use 6 cups instead of the 4 cups recommended by the recipe) and I double the topping.
Because I can.
:)
So:
6 cups nice, firm apples, peeled, cored and sliced into 13" x 9" pan
Topping:
1 cup flour
1 cups quick oats
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 cup butter, cold
Mix all dry ingredients. Slice cold butter into dry ingredients, then cut it into the dry mix with either a pastry blender or two knives, criss-crossing each other. When mixture looks "mealy", spread it over apples. Bake at 350° for about 35-40 minutes or until top is golden and apples are tender...
Serve on its own or with ice cream and or whipped cream.
Now while this was baking, we had a kitten hunt going on. Two kittens escaped from the short-sided box I had them in... and then they squeezed through (Their eyes weren't even open yet!!!) the spaces in the giant dog kennel and Mama took them to the wood pile and HID THEM.
The brat.
So today we tricked her.... Christina and Casey (two after school helpers) brought out one of the three remaining kittens and set him on the ground. Mama heard him, grabbed him up and carried him across the yard, to the big wood piles and dived UNDER a woodpile through a tiny hole you'd never think a cat could fit through.
Well, she did. So then Dave and the girls started removing the wood carefully, until they got to the kitten nest.... and Christina and Casey then brought all three kittens back to the tall box I now have in the ginormous dog crate.
And that was totally Dave's idea. And it worked. Good job, ol' Dave!!!!
And this is Christina:
And here is my side garden.... the little wall I built keeps MOST children out, but I find kittens sleeping in between the bushes and the flowers all the time. So sweet!!!
And then there's this!!!!!
Virginia, you're in a big apple area out there, too. It's really amazing how well apples do here. The longer, milder falls and the crisp/cold nights finish them off perfectly.
We are apple blessed!!!
I'm putting the Hilton Apple Festival on my list, because it's HILTON and it's apples.
ReplyDeleteWe have early Stayman Winesaps and our mountains have glorious apples if the early spring before the end of winter cooperates. But sigh. no Cortlands.
And let's be honest, I miss those farm apples from my Granddaddy's, the ones planted by the original settlers that dropped apples down in the middle of the cow field. The ones that tasted like they had taken centuries old soil and sun and distilled it into the most perfect fruit for apple sauce. I remember mashing the apples for canning with Nanny.
No wonder I love the season. The kitten pictures are a bonus!
One of my favorite applesauce book scenes was in "Understood Betsy" where Betsy was learning how to make applesauce with the cousins. When she finally figured out she needed a lot of sugar to make it taste right and the pride she took in serving it up to Cousin Ann at the end of the busy day. I love that book and I love that scene, a child coming of age and apples.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, Julie, fall foods rock it!
AND you helped me with the crossword in today's paper. Theme was Apple varieties.
DeleteRuthy, this is my go-to crisp recipe too. Betty just has it down.
ReplyDeleteAh, yes...apples. This is that time of year when I go on about how I miss Uncle John's Cider Mill and those good old Michigan apples. They just aren't the same here in Texas, although there are a few places where they grow them. Must do some research and see if I can find me an orchard.
We used to have some pear trees at the farm, though I'm not sure what happen to them. Don't think we lost them in the fire, but you never know. Maybe the drought got them. The kids used to love to pick the pears. I'd can some regular, some pickled. So yummy.
Pickled pears are amazing. And spiced pears and apples are one of my favorite treats!!!! Oh, such good, delicious food, Tex! You know northern clime apples are different. And I know they've developed apples for southern climates, but unless you're in the mountains, that hardening that comes from those sunny, ripening days and those cold, frosty nights just doesn't happen. Maybe they'll get there soon with an awesome, hearty one, but in the meantime Washington State and the Great Lakes areas are awesome producers. You grow beef and oil.... and cowboys. We'll send you amazing apples!!!
DeleteI love town festivals. My town in Western New York just had their annual Grape Festival. With floats and a grape queen and lots of good stuff. They even make grape pie. The grapes are mostly sold to Welch's which is nearby.
ReplyDeleteThe Grape festival in Naples was packed, Tina. Oh my stars, a gorgeous day and so many people. Mandy went into panic attack mode which was fairly amusing... :) The nice thing is that they spread the festival out over two venues, there were VERY GOOD LOOKING STERN NYS TROOPERS halting traffic for crossing the street, and there was food galore! But then, on top of the "approved" venues, residents had unapproved shops set up all up and down the street leading to and away from the official sites. Those places were so fun to shop and yes, I came home with fudge and a grape pie. :) Had to do it!!
DeleteFall is fun! We had our apple country outing this past weekend and got cider, doughnuts, apple bread, jam and of course plenty of apples. Now I'm sorry I passed up on the Honeycrisps, but I may have to make a return trip! Thanks for the recipe! Betty Crocker is the best!
ReplyDeleteHoney Crisps are indefinable. They're pale yellow fleshed, very firm and crisp, sweet and crunchy with a tart back taste. For eating I think they're right there with slightly less than ripe Crispins/Mutsus. Love 'em. And I love Betty Crocker, too!!!
Deletethe little black and white kitty is so cute! I've had a honeycrisp before! it was GOOD! pricey though..I usually get fuji - hate the red delicious except for some organic ones I found at HEB several years ago - the regular ones taste like grass or something - just blah. but mine are all from the grocery store
ReplyDeleteSusanna
Susanna, I feel the same way about Red Delicious. They're showy and taste pithy, like wood pulp. I'm not a fan at all. But these guys.... WONDERFUL!!!
DeleteI was introduced to Honeycrisp apples on a trip to Michigan (back when we lived in Kentucky). It was a visit-the-son-at-college trip mixed with a buy-a-goodly-number-of-apples trip. We came home with five bushels, which quickly became 70 quarts of sauce plus crisps, pies, etc. etc.
ReplyDeleteI mixed the Honeycrisp with Golden Delicious and Macintosh that year. DELICIOUS apple sauce!
I never add sugar to my apple sauce, either. I try to mix tangy and sweet apples together to get the right sweetness (thus the Goldens :) )
Oh my, I could talk apples all day!
(We won't mention the mini apple orchard I had to leave behind the last time we moved....)
Someday - not in this house because of the miniscule yard - but someday, when we buy land, I'll plant apple trees again. Looking forward to that day :)
Jan, I love your goal! And Christina-kitty-catcher thought it was cool to mix the Honey Crisp in with the Cortlands, but in the crisp we couldn't tell the difference. They were all wonderful. I will never be a skinny woman with apples and pumpkins around. I love fall!
DeleteYUM! I always double crumble toppings, too. Because it's NECESSARY! For the balance between sweet and the fruit. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat photos! Y'all have a lot of color already! We have only a rare yellow leaf here and there.
Missy, yes!!!! :) #lovethetopping
DeleteI cheated on the color, we're really pretty green but Christina's mother posted that one so I stole it. Their tree is fully turned. Did you guys know that soil temp is what turns leaves? I learned that at Cornell University, they have a cooperative extension service. Love it!
Now I'm craving homemade apple-something...apple crisp or applesauce, even just a baked apple. But I have no apples in the house today. How can that be??? Time for a trip to the market. I haven't tasted a Honeycrisp since two summers ago when we visited a farm market in the Okanagan. It was SO good! If I had them on hand I'd be eating them up so quickly there'd never be any left to use for baking.
ReplyDeleteThe kittens (and girls) are sweet. I'm so glad you located the two escape artists and have them securely imprisoned again. :)
Carol, run and get those honey crisps before they're gone for the season!!! :) We've got them at the markets now and they're going to be pricey until they have more trees in production. But what a fun find!
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