These individual apple crisps will delight your family and guests. Tender apple pieces lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg are covered with a hearty crumb topping. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top for the ultimate fall dessert.
Whether you’ve been apple picking or stocking up on apples from your local farm stand or supermarket, you know apples taste best in season. No more mushy apples flown in from around the world and covered in wax. I am so excited for local fall apples!
This time of year, I do eat apples plain, at least one a day, but I also love cooking with them. Apple crisps are my favorite apple dessert because they’re so much easier than apple pies or turnovers. And I really love crumb topping. With your own individually-portioned apple crisp, you get maximum crumb-topping to apples ratio. Not to mention a really cute dessert!
What Kind of Apples Should I use for Apple Crisps?
For baking, you want to choose an apple with a firm crisp flesh that will hold up its shape and not get mushy. I’ve baked with Honeycrisp, Empire, and Cortland apples. For the apple crisps in these photos, I used Honeycrisp apples. Honeycrisp are very sweet, so I added a minimal amount of sugar. If you use tart apples like Granny Smith, you may want to add an extra tablespoon or two of sugar if you prefer sweeter desserts. You can also use a couple different varieties to add a more complex flavor to your apple crisps. This article from Jessica Gavin discusses some of the best types of apples to use for cooking and baking as well as tips for selecting and storing apples.
Ingredients for Individual Apple Crisps
Here are the ingredients for the filling. That’s vanilla extract, flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg (in the same bowl), lemon juice, and about two pounds of thinly sliced apples. I don’t like apple desserts that are very heavy on the cinnamon and spices, so I use just enough cinnamon and nutmeg to give the apples that warm fall flavor without overpowering the dessert.
Here are the ingredients for the crumb topping. I used chopped pecans to add some crunchy texture to the topping, but you can use whatever type of nuts you have on hand. Almonds or walnuts are great choices too. There’s also some cinnamon and nutmeg, rolled oats, flour, cold butter diced into chunks, and light brown sugar.
How to Make Individual Apple Crisps
First, preheat the oven and prepare your baking dishes.
For the filling, just mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl.
Divide the filling between your baking dishes. You can fill these all the way to the top because the apples will sink down as they bake.
You can mix up the crumb topping in the same bowl you used for the filling, without washing it out. Save on dishes!
You’ll have to really push down the crumb topping to fit it all on the crisps, but it’s so worth it. No problem if a little spills over on the sides.
These will need about 40 minutes in the oven for the filling to bubble and the crumbs to be nicely browned.
I would argue that a naked apple crisp, like the photo below, is healthy enough to eat for breakfast.
What to Serve with Individual Apple Crisps
To make your apple crisp feel more like a luxurious dessert, I strongly recommend topping with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Did you know that à la mode in French means “in style?” I love how Americans took that to mean topped with ice cream. You have to try these apple crisps a la mode. When the ice cream melts into the hot apples, it gives the dessert a richer taste. We used non-dairy coconut milk ice cream for ours.
Are Individual Apple Crisps Good Leftover?
You bet they are! There are only two of us in our household, and this recipe makes six apple crisps. I have firsthand experience with the leftovers. Store leftovers in the fridge up to a week. The crisps can be easily reheated in the microwave. (If your ramekins are not microwave-safe, just transfer to a microwave-safe bowl.) You can also reheat in the oven, but check for your ramekins if it’s safe to put them from fridge to oven.
Do you love how cute individual desserts are? Check out my Dark Chocolate Pots de Crème or my Crème Brulee Without a Blowtorch.
Looking for more fall apple recipes? Don’t miss my Instant Pot Applesauce!
If you make this recipe, please give the recipe a rating and/or leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you!
Individual Apple Crisps
These individual apple crisps will delight your family and guests. Tender apple pieces lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg are covered with a hearty crumb topping. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top for the ultimate fall dessert.
Ingredients
Apple Crisp Filling
- 5 medium apples (about 2 pounds), peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- juice from 1/2 lemon
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Crumb Topping
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 6 tablespoons flour
- 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 6 tablespoons cold salted butter, diced into 1/2 inch pieces
- 6 tablespoons chopped nuts
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 6 (8 ounce) ramekins or individual baking dishes with butter-flavored or neutral-flavored cooking spray. Place ramekins on a baking sheet over parchment paper or aluminum foil for easier clean-up.
Mix all filling ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Divide filling between ramekins. You can fill them all the way to the top – they will sink down when baking.
For the crumb topping: Mix together oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
You can use the same mixing bowl you used for the filling without washing it. Add butter. Work the butter into the mixture with your hands or a pastry cutter until crumbs form. Stir in nuts.Divide crumb topping between ramekins. Push down on the apples to fit in as much crumb topping as possible. Bake 40 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and the top is nicely browned.
Serve hot, great with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Bon Appétit!
Patricia
Anxious to try apple crisp