KosherEye.com
by Alice Medrich, Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts
I leave the skins on the apples for the flavor and body they contribute. If you include some red apples in the mix, you will love the rosy-colored filling. If you are in a hurry, skip the dried apricots and orange zest and juice - as my daughter often does. The crisp is terrific warm or at room temperature, but it is especially flavorful cold, even after two or three or four days in the frig (if it lasts that long!) whipped cream is always nice, but it's not essential.
Ingredients
For the topping:
1/2 cup (2.25 ounces) all purpose unbleached flour
1/2 (1.85 ounces) cup rolled oats
Scant 1 cup (3.5 ounces) coarsely chopped walnut pieces
1/2 cup (3.5 ounces) sugar
5 tablespoons (2.5 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon salt
For the filling:
Grated zest and juice of 1 bright skinned orange, preferably unsprayed or organic
1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) dried apricots, coarsely chopped
1/4 (1 3/4 ounce) to 1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) sugar, depending on the tartness of the apples
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 medium sized apples*
Directions:
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Liberally butter a 2- quart (about 2 inches deep) baking dish.
To make the topping: Combine all of the topping ingredients and mix well. Set aside.
To make the filling: in a medium saucepan, combine the orange zest, juice, and chopped apricots, and bring to a simmer, and cook until the apricots are soft. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon. Halve and core the apples. Lay each half cut side down and cut twice in each directly to make 9 chunks. Add the chunks to the bowl and toss apples with the sugar and cinnamon. Stir in the apricots and juice from the saucepan.
Scrape the mixture into the buttered baking dish and spread evenly. Distribute the crumbly topping evenly over the apples. Bake for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, until the crisp is browned on top and the juices are bubbling and thickened (if your apples were a little dry, you may not see any juices toward the end of the baking time; if so, the browned topping is your cue to doneness). Serve warm or cold.
Notes:
Yield: Serves 6-8
Good to know;
Apples for baking
Use crisp flavorful apples with a decent balance of sweetness and acidity such as Pippins, Granny Smiths, Sierra Beauties, and/or new-crop Jonathans, or a mixture.
*To make this recipe parve, substitute non-dairy margarine for the butter
Recipes: Desserts, Crisp, Apples, Dairy, Kosher