How to Make Apple Oatmeal Crumble

Apple Oatmeal Crumble was one of the first things I ever made when I was learning to bake, around the age of nine. Since then it's been a family standard, sometimes used as dessert, and sometimes (on special occasions), for breakfast. Growing up, we called it Apple Crisp. But it's all the same thing: A deep layer of apples topped with a crunchy browned crumble of oats and butter and sugar on top.

This recipe will give you instructions for two delightful toppings as well as for the dessert itself.

Apple Oatmeal Crumble
8-10 medium apples, peeled and thickly sliced. Slightly tart apples go well with the sweetness of the crumb topping.
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
2/3 c. butter, softened
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c whole wheat flour
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 c oats (NB: "old fashioned" or steel cut oats make a more substantial topping than "quick oats", but you can use quick oats if you have nothing else)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Preheat your oven to 375*F.

1. Peel and slice the apples and put them into a lightly greased 9x13 casserole dish. To keep them from browning while they sit, toss the apples with 1/2 tsp. lemon juice.

2. In a medium sized bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar until it is smooth and light.

3. Add whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, oats, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Use a fork to stir these dry ingredients together before stirring them down into the butter/sugar mix.

4. Using the fork, stir the dry ingredients into the butter and sugar until it becomes crumbly.

5. Sprinkle the crumbly oat topping onto the apples.

6. Bake in a 375* oven for 30 minutes, or until crumble topping is nicely browned.

Although this "apple crisp" is delicious eaten on it's own, we enjoy it with two different milk-based toppings. The first is plain whipped cream, and the second is hot stove-top custard.

Home-made Whipped Cream (the simplest recipe ever)

1. Pour the contents of an 8 oz carton of heavy whipping cream (found in the refrigerated dairy aisle at any good-sized grocery store) into a mixing bowl.

2. Using beaters set to high-speed, whip the cream until it is light and stiff. It is ready when it makes stiff "peaks" as you pull the beaters up. Just be sure to turn the beaters off before you lift them up to check!

For sweet whipped cream, a tablespoon or two of white sugar can be added in with the cream.

Stove-top Vanilla Custard

1/2 c. white sugar
2 Tbls. cornstarch
1/8 tsp. salt
2 c. milk
2 eggs yolks, beaten
2 Tbls. soft butter
2 tsp. vanilla

1. In a medium sized saucepan, stir together sugar, cornstarch, and sauce. Gently whisk in the 2 c. milk.

2. On medium heat, bring this mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. When mixture thickens and begins to boil, remove from heat.

3. In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks, and gradually whisk in at least 1/2 of the hot milk/sugar mixture. Beat this smooth, and then pour back into the saucepan with the rest of the milk.

4. Bring back to a boil, and boil 1 minute, again stirring constantly.

5. Remove from heat, stir in butter and vanilla.

Serve hot or cold.

Whether you eat your Apple Crumble by itself, or with cream or custard (or both, if you want to be luxuriant about it!), this is a dish you will enjoy as winter approaches and the weather cools. It is sweet, warm, filling, and delicious. What could be better?